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EHILADELPHIA :
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION.
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BRIEF COMPEND
OF
BIBLE TEUTH.
BY ARCHIBALD ALEXANDER, D. D,
►
IN THE THEOLOGICAL 8EMINARY, AT
PRINCETON,
NEW JERSEY.
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EHILADELPHIA :
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION.
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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1846, by
A. W. MITCHELL, M. D.,
in the Office of the District Court for the Eastern District
of Pennsylvania.
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• • • • ••••• •
• • • » • • » • • •
• •• • •• • • •
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ADVERTISEMENT.
At the request of a benevolent friend, the
author prepared a brief Compend of Bible
Truth, to be inserted in a volume intended for
the instruction of the Blind, which contained
also Prayers and Hymns to aid their devotions.
When this volume was published by the Pres-
byterian Board of Publication, it was thought
this small Compend might be rendered useful
to others, as well as the Blind. Accordingly,
it was printed in a diminutive volume, which,
though it treated on the most vital subjects of
theology, might be read from beginning to end
in two or three hours. This little volume was
published without the author's name". Being
however persuaded, that it might with advan-
tage be enlarged, he has added what increases
the volume to more than double the size of the
original publication ; and this, not by adding
to the chapters already printed, which are left
unaltered, but by introducing other subjects,
not treated in. Ac Compend at first prepared.
M 109584
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iv ADVERTISEMENT.
The volume now given to the public com-
prises a brief system of theology, and may be
found useful to such as may not have the op-
portunity of studying larger works. As it is
not intended for the learned, but for plain,
common readers, technical phrases and ab-
struse disquisitions have been avoided; yet,
the author has attempted to establish every
doctrine advanced, by solid arguments, derived
from reason and Scripture.
Being firmly persuaded, that divine truth is
to be the grand instrument for the illumination
and reformation of the world, he feels desirous
to contribute his humble part towards its uni-
versal diffusion.
So far as Bible truth is contained in this
brief Compend, may the blessing of God at-
tend it to the benefit of every reader ! And if
any thing erroneous has been uttered, may it
be forgiven, and its evil tendency counter-
acted !
A. A.
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CONTENTS.
*/**^%/>^^/V^^^^^*/»*%
Chap. I. — being of god .... 9
Chap. II. — personality and perfection of
god 10
Chap. III. — the holy scriptures 12
Chap. IV.— unity of god .... is
Chap. V. — spirituality and simplicity of
the diyine nature - - - 21
Chap. VI. — character of god ... 24
Chap. VIL — the holy trinity 34
Chap. VIII. — divinity of christ 43
Chap. IX. — personality of the holy spirit 50
Chap. X. — creation ..... 57
Chap. XI. — good angels .... 60
Chap. XII. — bad angels .... 64
Chap. XIII. — providence of god 73
Chap. XIV. — man's primeval state 77
Chap. XV. — law of god - - - 81
Chap. XVI. — fall of man 92
Chap. XVII. — covenant of grace ; or, plan
OF REDEMPTION .... 93
Chap. XVIII. — the incarnation - - 104
Chap. XIX. — the expiatory sufferings of
CHRIST ; OR, THE ATONEMENT - - 109
1 * ▼
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IV CONTENTS.
Chap. XX. — resurrection and ascension of
CHRIST - - - - - -114
Chap. XXI. — mediatorial offices of christ 116
Chap. XXII. — justification - - - 120
Chap. XXIII. — regeneration and conver-
sion 127
Chap. XXIV. — repentance toward god and
FAITH IN OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST - 131
Chap. XXV. — sanctification ; or growth in
GRACE - - - - - -133
Chap. XXVI. — good works; or, christian
DUTIES. - - - - - -138
Chap. XXVII. — prater .... 144
Chap. XXVIII. — assurance of salvation - 148
Chap. XXIX. — perseverance of the saints 156
Chap. XXX. — the sacraments - - - 170
Chap. XXXI.— baptism - - - - 173
Chap. XXXII. — the lord's supper - - 176
Chap. XXXIII. — the lord's day and divine
worship ..---- 180
Chap. XXXIV.— death - - - - 194
Chap. XXXV. — the resurrection - - 196
Chap. XXXVI. — the judgment - - - 198
Chap. XXXVII. — heaven ; or, the state of
glorification 200
Chap. XXXVIII.— hell - 204
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COMPEND OF BIBLE TRUTH.
CHAPTER I.
BEING OF GOD.
Of all conceptions of the human mind, the idea of
God is the most sublime. It is not only sublime, but
awful. Every thing else appears diminutive while
the mind is occupied with this thought. Though the
idea of an eternal and infinite being is too great for
the grasp of the human intellect, yet it is suited to the
human mind. It fills it, and produces a feeling of re-
verence, which is felt to be a right emotion. If there
is no such being, this is the grandest illusion which
ever possessed the imagination of man. If it be an
error, then error is preferable to truth ; for on this sup-
position, truth in its whole compass has nothing in
grandeur to compare with illusion. Remove this
idea, and the mind is confounded with an infinite blank.
Deprived of this, the intellect has no object to fill it :
it is confounded and distressed with the retrospect of
the past, and prospect of the future. But it cannot
be, that this noblest of all conceptions of the human
mind should be false : the capacity of the soul of man
to form such a conception is a proof of the existence
of a great and good and intelligent First Cause.
7
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8 BEING OP GOD.
God has not left himself without a witness of his be-
ing and his perfections. It may well be doubted wheth-
er the evidence of a divine existence, the Author of all
things, could be clearer and stronger than it is. A dis-
play of exquisite skill in every organized body around
us is far better evidence than any extraordinary appear-
ance, however glorious, or the uttering of any voice,
however tremendous. Such miraculous phenomena
would indeed powerfully excite and astonish the mind,
and would be a certain proof of the existence of a su-
perior being ; but would, in reality, add nothing to the
force of the evidence which we already possess, in the
innumerable curiously and wisely organized animal
bodies by which we are surrounded. And if we were
confined to the examination of our own constitution of
mind and body, the innumerable instances of manifest
wisdom in the contrivance of the several parts, their
exact adaptation to one another, and their wonderful
correspondence with the elements of the external world
without us, the evidence of an intelligent cause is irre-
sistible. If any man surveys the structure of the hu-
man body, its bones and joints, its blood-vessels and
muscles, its heart and stomach, its nerves and glands,
and all these parts put into harmonious action by a
vital power, the source of which is not understood —
if he surveys the adaptation of light to the eye, of air
to the ear and to the lungs, and of food to the
stomachs of different animals, and notices the exact
correspondence between the appetites of animals,
and the power of their stomachs to digest that food
and that only which is craved by their appetites
respectively ; and considers what wonderful provision
has been made for the preservation and defence of
every species ; how much wisdom in their covering,
instruments of motion and defence ; in the propaga-
tion of tfyeir respective species, and the nourishment
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BEING OF GOD. 9
of their young — I say, if any man's mind is so con-
structed as to see all these things, and yet remain scep-
tical respecting the existence of an intelligent cause,
the conclusion must be that such a mind is destitute of
reason, or has not the capacity of discerning evi-
dence and feeling its force.
In prosecuting the argument from the evident ap-
pearance of wisdom in the structure of animal and
vegetable bodies,it is not necessary to multiply these
cumulative proofs ; for as one watch, or one tele-
scope would prove the existence of a skilful artist,
so the careful examination of a few specimens of
animal or vegetable organization will satisfy the
mind, as well as the minute survey of thousands of
similar organizations. The attempts of ingenious
and scientific men to account for these appearances,
so evidently indicative of design, without the suppo-
sition of an intelligent Creator, are so replete with
folly, that we cannot but think such men abandoned
of God to believe a lie, because they liked not to
retain the knowledge of God in their thoughts ; so
that it is still true, that it is the fool who hath said
in heart, " there is no God."
If all other arguments for the being of God were
wanting, the truth might be inferred with strong
probability from our moral feelings. Every man
feels himself bound by a moral law ; he cannot but
see the difference between right and wrong, in many
actions. The former he feels to be obligatory the
latter not. Whence this binding internal law, so
deeply engraven on the heart of every man, that
he cannot escape from the feeling of its obliga-
tion? Does it not clearly intimate that there is a
Lawgiver, who has provided a witness of his right in
every bosom ? Where there is a moral law there
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10 PERSONALITY AND PERFECTION OP GOD.
must be a moral governor. As long as conscience
exists in the breasts of men, atheism cannot prevail
long. In the tumult of the passions, in the glare of
false reasonings, God may for a while be forgotten
and his very being denied; but, ere long, these
moral feelings will bring men back to the acknow-
ledgement of their Creator. There is good reason to
think that the preservation of some religion among
all nations is more owing to their moral constitution
than to any reasoning on the subject. We need not
fear, therefore, that atheism will ever prevail very
generally, or continue long.
CHAPTER II.
PERSONALITY AND PERFECTION OF GOD.
It is admitted by all who believe that God exists, that
he possesses all conceivable perfection ; and right rea-
son would lead us to the opinion, that as he is infinite
he must possess attributes of which, at present, we
can form no conception.
Our ideas of excellence cannot exceed the manifes-
tations of perfection in the creation ; but it would be
absurd to suppose that any excellence could be in the
creatures, which did not exist in a higher degree in
the Creator.
As all men who acknowledge a God agree, that all
possible perfection belongs to his character, it is un-
necessary to adduce any arguments for its proof.
Indeed, it seems to be an intuitive truth, that all per-
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PERFECTION AND PERSONALITY OF GOD. 11
fection must reside in the first cause. The very idea
of God is that of a'being infinitely perfect. Whatever
doctrine, therefore, derogates from the perfection of
the Supreme Being must be false. It is, therefore, the
dictate of reason, that we should remove from our idea
of God, every thing which argues any weakness or
imperfection. And as our ideas of natural and moral
excellence are derived from contemplating the crea-
tures, we must rise to just conceptions of the Deity by
ascribing these excellencies to him, in an infinite
degree.
Upon this principle, we ascribe to God unity, spirits
uality, power, knowledge, immensity, eternity, immu-
tability, sovereignty, holiness, justice, goodness and
truth. Upon this principle, God must be independent,
and perfectly free to act according to his own pleas-
ure»
God is a person, distinct from the universe. Every
being who possesses intellect and will, is a person.
The execution of any work of design, in which there
is an adaptation of means to ends, and a harmonious
operation of parts to produce a desirable effect, neces-
sarily involves the $xercise both of intellect and will.
The idea that the universe is God, or that God is the
soul of the world, but not a person distinct from it, is
nothing more than a disguised system of atheism.
God is distinct from, and independent of all creatures.
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12 THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
CHAPTER III.
THE HOLT SCRIPTURES.
The Bible is made up of many books written through
a period of more than fifteen hundred years, by men
who professed to have received their doctrines from
God, and to have committed them to writing by his
direction. These Scriptures, then, must contain a
revelation from God, or be a vile imposture. On
the latter supposition it is marvellous, that the same
purpose of deception should be maintained for so long
a period, by a succession of impostors, all agreeing in
the same sentiments ; and that the cheat should never
have been discovered.
Again, when we examine the moral character and
tendency of these books, it is unaccountable that,
throughout, they should inculcate a sublimer theo-
logy and purer morality than any other books in the
world ; that they should condexjm every species of
vice, and especially, that they should severely repro-
bate all falsehood, deceit, and fraud ; thus, in almost
every page, pronouncing their own condemnation.
As it cannot be explained what could have made
wicked impostors wish to inculcate such doctrines,
so it is contrary to all experience, that men of habit-
ually corrupt minds should be able to conceive or
write discourses of so much moral purity ahd sur-
passing excellence. Read the sermons of Christ.
Peruse the epistles of the apostles, and try to believe
that these discourses proceeded from men steeped
in fraud and corrupt principles. We are ready at
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THE HOLT SCRIPTURES. IS
once to say — impossible ! When we see light, we
know that it must have proceeded from a luminous
body. When we see wisdom in creation, we know
that there exists a being of incomparable wisdom ;
and when we read a book of extraordinary power of
argument, or replete with sublime imagery, we are
sure that such works are the product of gifted minds.
What shall we think then, when we behold in the
Scriptures moral excellence shining forth in the
purest and most comprehensive precepts, and embo-
died in bright examples of consistent piety and vir-
tue ? The character of Jesus Christ, as portrayed
by the evangelists, is itself a moral phenomenon,
which cannot be accounted for on any other suppo-
sition than that the writers were inspired. It is easy
in words to ascribe exalted virtues to a hero, and to
exaggerate his excellences by heaping up pompous
epithets ; but to describe a character of perfect vir-
tue by merely relating what he said and did, and to
place him often in circumstances where it is not only
difficult to do right, but where an extraordinary wis-
dom is requisite to determine what is right, is not
easy. But in this way has the character of Jesus
Christ been delineated by the evangelists, without
one word of eulogy. And let it be remarked, that
they were unlearned men, who had enjoyed none of
the advantages of a liberal education. Let any
number of common, uneducated men undertake to
write a history of some eminent person, and what
would be the result, even if their intentions were
honest? No honest inquirer can read the Penta-
teuch, and fail to rise from the perusal, astonished at
the wisdom, the majesty, the purity, and the simpli-
city of the composition. Is it possible then that the
five books of Moses are a base forgery ? Could an
2
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14 THE HOLT SCRIPTURES.
impostor have persuaded a whole nation to adopt a
burdensome and expensive code of laws, if he had
not been able to give undoubted evidence of his
divine mission ? And could he have so deluded a
whole nation as to induce them to believe that they
saw the miraculous judgments of God poured out
on the Egyptians, that they saw the sea divided at
the word of Moses, that they actually marched
through an arm of the sea as on dry land, and that
they had been fed with manna rained from the
clouds for forty years, and had seen the water gush-
ing from the dry rock upon the touch of the won-
der-working rod, if no such events had ever occurred?
The history of these miracles is so interwoven with
the common events, and with the religious institu-
tions of the Jews, that they cannot be separated.
Let the sceptic tell us what motive could have in-
duced any wicked impostor to write the book of
Psalms. Here we have, not merely sublime poetic
imagery, but a spirit of fervent elevated devotion,
to which there is no ^parallel in all the heathen writ-
ings. He must have been a strange impostor, that
could compose such songs, or could have felt any
pleasure in such elevated, spiritual exercises. Can
the deist now produce any compositions which will
bear a comparison with these ?
Again, read the book of Proverbs. Do you see
any marks of imposture here ? Do we not find con-
centrated more useful maxims of prudence and
political economy, and more excellent moral precepts
than can be gathered from all the sages of the pagan
world ?
But, it may be alleged, that men differ in their
tastes respecting the internal excellence of literary
compositions ; and that in a matter of so great im-
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THE HOLT SCRIPTURES. 15
portance we ought to possess some more decisive
evidence of divine inspiration. Well, what will be
considered sufficient evidence that God has made to
men a revelation of his will ? Will it be satisfac-
tory, if they who profess to be inspired are enabled
to do works which are far above the power of man,
and which require the almighty power of God?
No one will doubt that if God give his attestation to
any declaration, it should be received as true, for
" He is not a man that he should lie." If then, the
apostles actually wrought miracles in the name of
Jesus, and in confirmation of their doctrine, it can-
not be denied that they were inspired. That such
miracles were actually wrought openly and in the
presence of watchful and bitter enemies is a matter
of record. The four evangelists have testified in the
gospels, that Christ gave sight to the blind, hearing
to the deaf, health to the sick, sound limbs to the
cripple, and that in several instances, before a multi-
tude of people, he raised the dead. They testify,
that after his crucifixion he rose from the dead; and
that forty days after his crucifixion he sent down, as
he had promised, the Holy Spirit, on the apostles,
bestowing upon them and others various miraculous
gifts, which Paul publicly testifies were common in
the churches. The truth of Christianity then, rests
on this single point, Is the testimony of these mira-
cles true, or a mere fable ? That the gospels were
written near the time when these things were done
is capable of the fullest proof. Indeed, had not these
facts been credited fully by the first disciples, they
never would have submitted to such sacrifices, and
exposed themselves to such dangers, as we know
they did. All earthly considerations weighed hea*
vily on the other side. Every convert to Christianity
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16 THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
is, therefore, a witness of the truth of these miracles;
for they had every motive to examine into the truth,
and the facts were of such a nature that they could
not have been deceived.
It does, indeed require, strong evidence to satisfy
the mind that there has been a departure from the
common course of nature ; but testimony may be so
strong that it would be unreasonable to doubt of the
miracles which it is brought to attest. It is admitted
that there have often been false witnesses, and that
we may be deceived by trusting to insufficient testi-
mony ; but, we know, also, that in many cases our
faith in testimony is as strong as in those things
which have passed before our eyes. The point of
examination then is, whether it is more probable
that the testimony is false, or that a miracle has been
wrought. If many persons, without any motive to
deceive, and without previous concert, agree and
stand to it in the midst of threatenings and suffer-
ings, that they have witnessed miracles, it would be
folly to disbelieve. And, especially, if such events
followed in such immediate and continued succession
as can only be accounted for by supposing the mira-
cles to have been performed, the evidence may arise
to such a degree of certainty as to assure us that we
are not deceived. Now, the conversion of the civi-
lized world to Christianity can never be accounted
for on any supposition but the truth of the miracles
and supernatural influence accompanying the gospel.
And the whole train of succeeding events goes to
corroborate the truth of the evangelical history.
Another incontrovertible evidence of the truth of
Christianity is the salutary effects which it has pro-
duced in the world. The conversion and reforma-
tion of sinners has been a standing proof of the
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THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 17
divine origin of the Bible ; and this evidence is not
confined to ancient days. Blessed be God, clear and
striking instances of the reformation of wicked men
have occurred under our own observation. And the
gospel has produced in our own times such a remark-
able change in the moral and civil condition of some
of the most ignorant, degraded, and vicious tribes
of heathen, that if there were no other evidence of
its truth, this would go far to satisfy an honest mind.
Can any reasonable man believe that preaching a
cunningly devised fable would turn men from their
sins, to which they had been long habituated ?
Hundreds and thousands, also, in Christian lands
can testify, that the truth of God has produced a
powerful and salutary effect on their own minds,
convincing them of their sin and danger, and excit-
ing in them trust in Christ, which has enkindled
their love, and brought sweet peace into their troubled
breasts. And we see, continually, the power of the
gospel to afford consolation in affliction and to buoy up
the soul with assured hope, even in the hour of death.
But, if all the convincing proofs, above mentioned,
were wanting, the undeniable prophecies which have
been literally fulfilled, are a clear demonstration of a di-
vine revelation ; for who can predict distantfuture events
but God alone ? The prophecies relate to the fortunes
of the Jewish people — to the destiny of many great and
proud cities and nations ; but the most important pre-
dictions of the Old Testament relate to the Messiah,
which were literally fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth. Yet
no prophecy of Scripture is more striking and convinc-
ing than that of Christ respecting the destruction of Je-
rusalem, and the ruin and dispersion of the Jews, the
fulfilment of which is recorded in the history of Jo-
sephus who was not a Christian, but an eye witness
of the facts. 2 *
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18 UNITY OF GOD.
CHAPTER IV.
UNITY OF GOD.
The idea of God is forced upon the rational mind,
to enable it to account for the innumerable marks
of design manifest in the universe ; but there is no
necessity to suppose more than one great First Cause,
to account for every thing. There is, therefore,
nothing in reason, or in the works of nature, which
would lead to the conclusion that there are more
Gods than one. Indeed, the very supposition of
more Gods than one shocks and confounds the ra-
tional mind. If we were capable of comprehending
the subject, it is more than probable that we should
see that the existence of two infinite beings is an ab-
surd and impossible conception. There is, however,
no need to resort to metaphysical arguments; the
harmony of the laws of the universe indicates one
mind — one counsel. The existence of evil led some
of the ancients to adopt the theory of two eternal
beings; but if that were true, we should find two
systems of laws in the universe; and a continual
interference and collision between them; whereas,
the laws of matter, even as far as the planets and
stars, are uniform. Between all the parts of crea-
tion, there is a beautiful consistency, and mutual
relations, which show, that as the Author of the
universe is infinite in knowledge and power, so He is
One.
And as to the existence of evil, moral and natural,
Digitized byVjOOQlC
UNITY OF GOD. 19
it can be accounted for by the liberty of action with
which man and other moral agents were endowed ;
which liberty is essential to a system in which crea-
tures render a voluntary obedience to their Creator.
If there had been no possibility of sinning, there
could have been no such thing as virtue, or moral
excellence.
But again, what is often called evil, arises neces-
sarily from the limited nature of creatures; and
especially when the plan includes a scale of being,
descending from the highest to the lowest. Every
species, as you descend, is less perfect than those
above it. Such a gradation involves necessarily the
evil of partial defect. But properly speaking, this
is no evil ; every thing in the universe is good in its
kind ; but there is no absolute perfection but in God
alone — " None is good but God."
We do not assert that the argument for the unity
of God from reason is absolutely demonstrative ; as
it might be alleged, that two or more beings, wise,
powerful, and good, might be united in counsel, in
the plan of the universe and the works of creation ;
just as several men might agree upon a plan of a
temple or other building; and all the appearances
would be the same, as if only one person were con-
cerned. Let this be granted, and yet we may assert,
that reason cannot furnish the shadow of an argu-
ment in favour of a plurality of Gods. As far as
she sees and speaks, her voice is in favour of the
divine unity.
We feel less concerned to insist on any thing fur-
ther as evident from the light of nature, because
the doctrine is clearly revealed, and repeatedly
taught in the Sacred Scriptures. All that we deem
it important to establish on this point is, that reason
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20 UNITY OF GOD.
teaches nothing contrary to the unity of God ; and
so far as she sheds any light on the subject, it is alto-
gether in favour of the doctrine.
Let us then attend to the clear, unequivocal decla-
rations of the Bible. " Hear Israel, the Lord thy
God is one Lord." Deut. vi. 4. " The Lord He is
God, there is none else beside Him." iv. 5. " Thou
art the God, even thou alone of all the kingdoms of
the earth." 2 Kings xix. 15. "Thou, even Thou
art Lord alone." Neh. ix. 6. " Thus saith the Lord
the King of Israel, and his Redeemer the Lord of
hosts ; I am the first, and I am the last ; and besides
me there is no God." Is. xliv. 6. " Is there a God
besides me? yea, there is no God, I know not any."
8. " And this is eternal life, that they know thee
the only true God." John xvii. 3. " But to us there
is but one God." 1 Cor. viii. 6. " God is one." Gal.
iii. 20. " Thou believest that there is one God ; thou
doest well." James ii. 19.
It would be easy to multiply texts in confirmation
of this doctrine, but these are sufficient. Indeed, no
one who admits the Bible as authority, can doubt on
this subject ; and consequently, the fact is, that Jews
and Christians have received the Unity of God as a
fundamental truth.
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THE DIVINE NATURE. 2\
CHAPTER V.
SPIRITUALITY AND SIMPLICITY OP THE DIVINE
NATURE.
That God is a pure Spirit,reason as well as Scripture
requires us to believe. As God is an intelligent being,
and the source of all intelligence, he must be a spirit ;
and as he is a voluntary agent, he must be an intelli-
gent person. Matter is inert, unconscious, and cannot
be the subject of thought or volition. Matter is also
divisible to an indefinite extent, and the parts of bodies
are separate from each other, so that each particle is a
separate existence ; but unity belongs to mind, there-
fore the mind cannot be material. Again, all matter is
solid and extended, and necessarily excludes all other
bodies from occupying the same space: if then God
were a material being, as he is omnipresent, he would
exclude all other bodies from the universe : or if not
everywhere present, there would be some places where
there was no God ; and if limited to a certain locality,
however extended it might be, there would be infinite
space, in which God does not exist.
But if the materialist denies that inactivity, solidity,
divisibility and extension, are the natural properties of
matter, and maintains that all matter consists of mo-
nads, which are in their nature active, indivisible, un-
extended, and that some of these, if not the whole, are
endued with consciousness, and are susceptible of all
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22 SPIRITUALITY AND SIMPLICITY
the actions which we ascribe to mind, then there is
no such thing as matter in the universe ; but every
thing that exists must fall under the class of spiritual
being ; for that substance which is active, indivisible,
unextended, and capable of consciousness and other
mental acts, is mind or spirit, and we cannot give a
better definition of spirit than to deny to it those
properties commonly ascribed to matter, and allow-
ing to it the capacity of thought.
Materialists, therefore, in attempting to overthrow
the belief of spiritual being, do in fact subvert the
doctrine of the existence of matter, by affirming that
it does not possess the properties commonly attri-
buted to it, and does possess the powers and capa-
bilities of spiritual existence. And on this theory,the
materialist becomes an immaterialist; and when men
agree in the properties which belong to any sub-
stance, it matters little what name they give it
We leave the atheistical materialist to settle his ac-
count with natural philosophers, as to the properties
of matter ; and according to his own theory, all our
arguments derived from the immateriality of the
soul, for its incorruptibility or continued existence,
stand in full force.
As God is a pure intelligence, and everywhere pre-
sent, and everywhere active, he is a Spikit.
Some, however, while they admitted this, held
that God was the soul of the world, and that the
world was to him what our bodies are to us. This
is one form of the doctrine of pantheism, which has
been revived in our day. It is a monstrous notion
to consider all bodies a part of the Supreme Being.
It destroys all individuality and all accountableness,
and therefore, contradicts some of the clearest intui-
tions of our minds. Every man is conscious that he
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OP THE DIVINE NATURE. 23
is a person, distinct from all other persons; and
every man feels that he is capable of acting freely,
and of doing good or evil, as a moral agent ; and
that he is accountable for his actions. All theories
and reasonings which contradict self-evident prin-
ciples of truth, must be false, and deserve no further
consideration.
The Holy Scriptures, everywhere, represent God
as a being of infinite intelligence, as a being of will
and affection ; as omnipotent, and ever active ; for
all things are not only created, but upheld in being
by his sustaining hand. Even active beings require
his conservative energy to support them in being,
and to continue their faculties in existence. There-
fore, it is not only said, that he upholdeth all things
by his power, but that it is " in him we live, and
move, and have our being.' '
The Holy Scriptures enter into no nice disquisi-
tions respecting matter and spirit, their properties,
and differences ; but assume as true, those first truths
which are known without philosophy, to every man
of common sense.
That man is a free and accountable agent, is every ^
where, in the Bible, not proved, but assumed as
true, and as being as well known as it can be. And
the same is the fact in regard to our nature consist-
ing of soul and body ; of which every man, who
has his reason, is as well convinced as he could be
by any revelation.
And, as soon as we know that there is a God, we
feel constrained to admit, that he must possess all
excellence and every possible perfection, as before
stated. And, therefore, as spirit is the most excel-
lent kind of substance, and as God is made known
to us as wise and powerful, by the creation, we can-
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24 CHARACTER OF GOD.
not but believe, that he is a pure spirit, uncom-
pounded, and free from bodily parts and members.
And when God is spoken of as having head, hands,
face, arms, feet, &c, it is necessary to consider this
mode of speech as figurative, and intended to repre-
sent those things in the divine character or actions,
which bear some distant resemblance to what is
found in man. Indeed, when God is said to be a
Spirit, it is not to be understood that his essence,
which is eternal and immutable, is of the same na-
ture with created spirits ; but only, that there is a
resemblance. If there were any substance known
to us of a nobler nature than spirit, we should of
course ascribe that to God ; but still with the qualifi-
cation, that the essence of God is infinitely superior
to all creatures. We need not be surprised, there-
fore, to find, that there is but one text which posi-
tively asserts that God is a Spirit, excepting those
which relate to the third person of the adorable
Trinity; for this truth is every where assumed as
known, and as implied in all his attributes. The
text referred to is in John iv. 24. "God is a Spirit;
and they that worship him must worship him in
spirit and in truth."
CHAPTER VI.
CHARACTER OF GOD.
God is the maker of all things. He is therefore al-
mighty. He is also wise. Of this our own frame is
evidence enough. We are fearfully and wonderfully.
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CHARACTER OF GOD. 25
made. Our eyes and ears, our hands and feet, our
mouths and stomach, and heart and blood-vessels, all
attest the wisdom of God. We see it also in the in-
ferior animals. Their bodies are formed with as
much wisdom as our own. Every creature has a form
and nature, and appetites, and instincts suited to its
condition in the world. The birds with their feathers
and wings, the fishes with their fins, and the beasts
with their feet of various kinds, are proofs of the wis*
dom of God. The trees, the flowers, and the grass do
also show forth the wisdom of Him who gave them
being. If we admire the wisdom of man in a watch,
or a telescope, or a steam engine, much more should we
be filled with adoring wonder, when we contemplate
the infinitely superior wisdom of God, displayed in all
his works. Wherever we turn our eyes, we are met
with the marks of wise design. The sun, which gives
us light by day, and diffuses life through all nature, is
a wonderful object The moon and stars are beautiful
and glorious works of the great Creator. Day and
night, winter and summer, seed time and harvest,
speak the wisdom of God. Indeed, the evidences of
divine wisdom in every thing within us and around
us, are so innumerable, that it is impossible to recount
them. We may then, every hour, exclaim, with the
royal Psalmist, " How manifold are thy works, in
wisdom hast thou made them all :" " The earth is full
of thy riches :" or with the wise man, " The Lord by
wisdom hath founded the earth, by understanding he
hath established the heavens :" or with the prophet,
" He hath made the earth by his power, he hath es-
tablished the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched
out the heaven by his understanding. ,,
God is good. His goodness is manifest in every
work of his wisdom, for he hath so continued and
3
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26 CHARACTER OF GOD.
arranged all things in the best manner, to promote the
happiness of his creatures, according to their nature and
capacity. Especially, his goodness appears in the ca-
pacity of pleasure given to man, all the exercises and
operations of whose nature give him pleasure, when
indulged in their proper measure. Man is formed
with such a nature, that he cannot open his eyes on
the beautiful world which he inhabits, without plea-
sure. The glory of the firmament, the beauty of the
landscape, and the sublimity of the lofty mountains
and vast ocean, fill the rational mind with pure delight
The various works of nature or of art, perceived by
the eye or ear, furnish a feast to the mind. The food
which nourishes us is pleasant to the taste, and the water
which gushes from the earth, affords a sweet refresh-
ment. The light is pleasant to the eyes, and the air is
felt to be invigorating to the lungs. Action is plea-
sant, and so is repose. Sleep, though it is the image of
death, is sweet and refreshing to the labouring man*
There are to man, thousands of sources of pleasure.
If he were only innocent, even the world as it is,
though labouring under a curse for sin, would still fur-
nish many of the delights of paradise. Truly God
is good. To Moses he said, " I will make all my
goodness to pass before thee." And when he pro-
claimed to his servant his name, a part of it was, " abun-
dant in goodness and truth." " The earth is full of
the goodness of the Lord." how great is thy good-
ness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee !
" The goodness of God endureth continually."
God is holy. Every excellence is his, and without
holiness he would not be an object of veneration.
The dictates of our own conscience teach us that the
Father of our spirits is holy. And in the Bible no
attribute of Jehovah is more clearly and frequently
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CHARACTER OF GOD. 87
brought to view. Holiness is the true ground of
that adoration which enters so essentially into the
worship of God. " Worship ye at his footstool for he is
holy." " But thou art holy, thou that inhabitest the
praises of Israel." "The Lord is holy in all his
works." Holiness is the sum of all moral excellence.
When the heavenly hosts worship Jehovah, they
ascribe holiness to him in the most emphatic manner.
u Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts." And the
four symbolical living creatures whom John saw be-
fore the throne of the Most High, " rest not day and
night, saying, Holy, holy, holy lord god almighty,
which is and was and is to come." Every thing
which has any relation to God, or his worship is holy $
his word, his house, his angels, his prophets, his peo-
ple, his sabbaths, and all the places where he records
his name, and all the institutions by which he is wor-
shipped. " There is none holy as the Lord." God is
also just and righteous, giving to every one his due.
Justice is the rectitude of God's nature. Justice is es-
sential to him as governor of the world. " Shall not the
Judge of all the earth do right ?" " Justice and judg-
ment are the habitation of his throne." " The Lord
is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his
works." " He will by no means spare the guilty."
The Lord is the righteous Judge. " And I heard the
angel say, Thou art righteous, Lord" — " Lord,
true and righteous are thy judgments."
God is great. "The Lord your God is a great
God." " Thou art great, Lord God, none is like
unto thee." When Solomon was engaged in erect-
ing the temple, he said, " The house I build is great,
for great is our God." Thus also Nehemiah, in his
prayer, (ix. 32,) calls God, " The great, the mighty,
and the terrible God." And Isaiah, " Great is the
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28 CHARACTER OF GOD.
Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee." (xix. 20.)
And Jeremiah, " Thou art great, and thy name is
great in might." (x. 6.) Mention is often made in
Scripture of God's "great name." " What wilt thou
do unto thy great name?" (Josh. vii. 9.) "Behold,
I have sworn by my great name." (Jer. xliv. 9.)
" Thou art great, and thy name great." (x. 6.) " My
name shall be great among the Gentiles." By the
"name" of God we should understand his attributes.
God is great in all his perfections ; and " his great-
ness is unsearchable."
God is eternal. He has had no beginning, and he
will have no end. This perpetuity of existence is
frequently expressed in the Bible, by saying, He is,
and was, and is to come. Of his years there is no
end : " Before the mountains were brought forth,"
said Moses, " or ever thou hadst formed the earth
or the world, even from everlasting to everlasting,
thou art God." Eternity is often ascribed to God in
Scripture. " Unto the King eternal." " The eternal
God is thy refuge." " His eternal power and God-
head." Indeed, the idea of eternity, though incom-
prehensible, forces itself upon us when we think of
the First Cause. He who is the Creator of all things
can have no beginning. To suppose the contrary,
would involve us in the grossest absurdity. And as
God is eternal, so he is unchangeable. He says of
himself, " I change not." He is the Father of lights,
with whom "there is no variableness nor shadow
of turning." His purposes and plans are as un-
changeable as his nature. " My counsel shall stand,
and I will do all my pleasure." Any change in the
essence or will of Jehovah would argue weakness,
or want of perfect knowledge of all contingencies.
God knows all things. "Thou God seest me."
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CHARACTER OF GOD. 29
" The Lord searcheth the hearts and trieth the reins
of the children of men. There is nothing hidden
from his sight. All things are naked and open be-
fore him with whom we have to do. He seeth the
end from the beginning." All the free actions of his
creatures are known to him, for he hath most exactly
foretold many such actions, as is evident from his
predictions respecting the treachery of Judas, the
denial of Peter, and the malice and envy of his cru-
cifiers. If the Lord was not omniscient he could not
possibly govern the world with wisdom. But no
truth is more clearly revealed, and no attribute is
more essential to the perfection of Jehovah. " For
thou, even thou only knowest the hearts of all the
children of men."
God is every where. " Am I a God at hand, saith
the Lord, and not a God afar off?" "If I ascend
up into heaven, thou art there; if I make my bed in
hell, behold thou art there. If I take the wings of
the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the
sea, even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right
hand shall hold me." "For his eyes are on the
ways of man, and he seeth all his goings." " Be-
hold, I fill heaven and earth." And yet the heaven
of heavens cannot contain him. And he is not only
present, but active. He sustains all things by the
word of his power. He is the living God. " In him
we live and move and have our being."
God is incomprehensible. "Who by searching
can find him out ; who can find out the Almighty to
perfection?" "Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me ; it is high, I cannot attain to it." His great-
ness is unsearchable. " There is no searching of his
understanding." " the depth of the riches both
of the wisdom and knowledge of God ; how un-
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30 CHARACTER OF GOD.
searchable are his judgments, and his ways past
finding out." So these are parts of his ways, but
how little a portion is heard of him ! But the thun-
der of his power, who can understand ? And so it
will ever be, for the time can never come when the
finite shall comprehend the infinite. Hereafter,
much of the darkness which now overspreads the
divine character and dispensations, will be dissi-
pated ; but new mysteries will be forever rising to
the view of the contemplative mind ! But if we
have all the knowledge of God, of which our finite
minds are susceptible, we should desire no more.
An increasing knowledge of God will be one of the
chief felicities of heaven.
God is merciful and gracious. Unless this attri-
bute of mercy had been clearly revealed, a knowledge
of all other attributes would give us little comfort.
Even the goodness of God would hold out no conso-
lation to sinners, who had forfeited every claim to
divine benefits. When inexorable justice holds crim-
inals in its grasp, of what account is it to them that
their king dispenses favours to his obedient subjects ?
Man, by nature, is justly condemned. Justice can-
not be set aside ; it must have its demand, or God
must change. Then, the only relief is the mercy and
grace of God. And mercy can only have room for
exercise when justice is satisfied. And this wonder-
ful work has been accomplished by the atonement
of the Son of God. " God so loved the world that
he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever be-
lieveth in him should not perish, but have everlast-
ing life." " Not that we first loved God, but that
he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation
for our sins."
The chief object of divine revelation was to reveal
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CHARACTER OF GOD. 31
the mercy of God. That God was good, and would
do good to his obedient creatures, reason could teach ;
and that he was just, and would render to every one
his due, was also a dictate of natural religion. But
how God could be just and justify the ungodly, was
a problem which human reason never could solve.
That, however, which is impossible to man is pos-
sible with God. "Mercy and truth have met to-
gether, righteousness and peace have kissed each
other." Through the satisfaction made by Christ's
atonement to divine justice, the door of mercy has
been opened, and a free salvation offered to the
guilty. The love of God to sinners, which is the
same as his mercy, is much spoken of in the word
of God. And indeed it is, at once, the most delight-
ful and wonderful object which can engage the con-
templation of any human being. This love has its
origin in the divine mind ; there was nothing in the
character of fallen man to excite it. It is, therefore,
sovereign, free, and from everlasting. The depth
and height and length and breadth of this love pass
all knowledge. The bright evidence of its strength
and freeness is found in the gift of his only begotten
Son. " The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to
anger and plenteous in mercy." " As high as the
heaven is above the earth, so great is his mercy to-
ward them that fear him." When he proclaimed his
name to Moses, it was, " The Lord is merciful and
gracious, slow to anger, abundant in goodness and
truth,, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving in-
iquity, transgression and sin." The songs of praise
addressed to God in the ancient church, were wont
to be concluded with the chorus, " The mercy of the
Lord endureth forever." " give thanks unto the
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39 CHARACTSB OF GOD.
Lord, for his mercy endureth forever." " Let Israel
now say, that his mercy endureth forever."
God is a God of truth and faithfulness. Truth is
his very nature. All his declarations are true.
" Thy word is truth." And as he has consented to
enter into covenants with men, and to make great
and precious promises to his people, he is faithful in
fulfilling whatever he has spoken. No part of the
good which he has ever promised has failed, or ever
can fail of its accomplishment. " And ye know in
all your hearts, and in all your souls, that not one
thing hath failed, of all the good things which the
Lord your God spake concerning you." "Know,
therefore, that the Lord thy God he is God, the faith*
ful God, who keepeth covenant and mercy with them
that love him, and keep his commandments, to a
thousand generations." He is therefore styled the
"covenant-keeping God."
And as he is faithful in the fulfilment of his pro-
mises, so is he true in the execution of his threaten-
ings against impenitent transgressors. To suppose
that his denunciations of vengeance against sinners
were merely spoken to produce terror, is most dis-
honouring to the God of truth. " The strength of
Israel will not lie." "God is not a man that he
should lie." "Hath he spoken, and shall he not
make it good ?" " Surely, Lord, thou wilt slay
the wicked." " The Lord will take vengeance on
his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his ene-
mies." If in any case his threatenings are not exe-
cuted, it is because a condition was implied, as when
God threatens an individual or a nation with destruc-
tion, and that individual or nation takes warning and
repents, then his wrath is turned away. In all such
threats there is an implied condition, that if the guilty
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CHARACTER OF GOD. S3
will repent, they shall escape the threatened destruc-
tion. Indeed, the very end of addressing such threat-
enings to men, is to bring them to repentance, that
they may escape condign punishment.
God is long-suffering and forbearing toward the
children of men. " He is not slack concerning his
promise, as some men count slackness, but is long-
suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance."
" He endureth with much long-suffering the vessels
of wrath fitted to destruction." This forbearance
of the Almighty is often abused by wicked men.
" Because judgment is not speedily executed against
an evil work, therefore the heart of the children of
men is fully set in them to do evil. ,,
God is condescending and compassionate. When
we consider the majesty of God, nothing is more
wonderful than his condescension. " He humbleth
himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and
in the earth." " What is man that thou art mindful
of him ? or the son of man that thou visitest him ?
Though the Lord be high he hath respect unto the
lowly." " Though heaven be his throne and earth
his footstool, yet to this man will he look who is of
an humble and contrite spirit and trembleth at his
word." " Like as a father pitieth his children, so
the Lord pitieth them that fear him."
God is supreme. " His kingdom ruleth over all,
and he doth according to his will, in the armies of
heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth."
All honour, glory, blessing, and praise should be
ascribed to God.
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34 THE HOLY TRINITY.
CHAPTER VII.
THE HOLY TRINITY.
The Scriptural evidence of this doctrine would not
be deemed insufficient by any one, were it not for
the idea that there is something in the doctrine re-
pugnant to reason ; or, which it is very difficult to
reconcile to right reason. The only thing then,
which reason has to do with the subject is, to exam-
ine whether there is any thing in the orthodox doc-
trine of the Trinity, which is manifestly repugnant to
any truth clearly ascertained by the use of right
reason. It is admitted that this doctrine is not known
by the light of nature ; for even if there should be
found in the material universe, or in the human mind,
a resemblance to the Trinity, as some have supposed,
this resemblance, if admitted would furnish no con-
clusive argument in favour of the doctrine. It is not
pretended that the doctrine is either made known, or
can be proved by reasoning. It is a doctrine of pure
revelation. But if its opponents could show that it
contradicted any clear and universally acknowledged
principles of truth, we should be reduced to the ne-
cessity of either rejecting the Bible, which teaches
the doctrine, or of so interpreting the Scriptures, as
to exclude the absurd opinion. The first course is
pursued by deists, who often give this as a sufficient
reason for rejecting the Bible, that it contains doc-
trines contrary to reason. Jews and Mohammedans
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THE HOLY TRINITY. 35
are found making the same objection. But all Anti-
trinitarian Christians adopt the second course. They
admit the evidences of divine revelation to be con-
vincing, and they therefore receive the Scriptures as
a true revelation. But, as they think that this doc-
trine is contrary to reason, they determine that it
cannot be the doctrine of divine revelation ; and in
consequence, exert all their force to destroy the au-
thority of such texts as seem to contain it; or so
interpret them, that they may speak a different lan-
guage. It seems necessary, therefore, to inquire,
whether, indeed, there is any thing in the doctrine
of the Trinity palpably contradictory, or evidently
incompatible with evident principles of reason. Here
it is important to distinguish between doctrines which
are above reason, and those which are contrary to
reason. That many things which are certainly true
are above reason, must be admitted by every rational
man that will consider the subject. That God is
without beginning is as certain a truth as any which
could be mentioned, and yet it is above reason.
Who can comprehend a duration without a begin-
ning ? And from this incomprehensible truth, even
atheism would give no relief; for the atheist is obliged
to admit that something has existed from eternity,
unless he choose to say that all existing things origin-
ated without cause, which would be still more incom-
prehensible. That God is every where present is
admitted by Unitarians ; and yet they must maintain
that there can be no diffusion of the divine essence
through the parts of space ; but that the whole Deity
is every where. Is not this above reason ? And
who can comprehend the divine omniscience ? In-
deed, as all the attributes of God are infinite, that
very term shows that they transcend human reason $
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36 THE HOLY TRINITY.
for no finite mind can comprehend that which is infi-
nite. There are also facts which relate to our own
existence, the truth of which we know certainly,
and yet we are utterly unable to comprehend them.
Who can explain the true cause of muscular motion
in the human body? Nothing is more certain in
our experience than that our minds and bodies are
intimately united, so that they constantly and recip-
rocally affect each other. How it is that we per-
ceive by the eye, hear by the ear, distinguish tastes
by the tongue, or odours by the smell, are all myste-
ries. They are truths, but they are above reason.
Now it is readily admitted, that the doctrine of a
Trinity, in the divine essence, falls into the class of
incomprehensible truths. We know it to be a truth,
because God, who cannot lie, has plainly declared it;
but how it is, or how it can be, is above our compre-
hension, just as some of the fundamental truths of
natural religion, which have been mentioned, are
above reason.
It is however alleged, that God's being at the
same time one and three is plainly repugnant to rea-
son; the proposition containing a palpable contra-
diction. This statement Trinitarians utterly deny;
and certainly the external evidence is very much
against it ; for much the greater number of wise and
impartial men, who have carefully examined the
subject since Christianity was introduced, have be-
lieved in the doctrine of the Trinity. But let us
examine this objection, and see whether it has any
foundation. If Trinitarians asserted that the persons
of the Trinity were three and one, in the same sense,
there would indeed be an evident contradiction ; but
this is so far from being the fact, that all writers on
the subject are careful to state, that while there are
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THE HOLY TRINITY. 37
three distinctions, called persons, there is but one
essence. But it is alleged, that if there be three per-
sons, there must be three Gods; for a person is a
distinct, intelligent and voluntary agent ; and if there
be three distinct, intelligent, voluntary agents, there
must be three Gods. But who can show it to in-
volve any contradiction that three equal intelligences
should be united in the possession of a common
essence ? But the whole force of this objection arises
from taking the word person in a strict and definite
sense, as used when applied to men ; whereas, we
are under no necessity of retaining this word ; it is
not found in Scripture, and many Trinitarians have
rejected it. There may be three in the divine es-
sence, and yet these may not with much propriety
be.called persons. Still, in our opinion, there is no
need to depart from the terms commonly made use
of by Trinitarians. Some term is necessary to desig-
nate the three, and there is no objection to the word
person, which would not exist in full' force against
any other word ; and this term has the sanction of
long usage, and is found in almost every writer on
the subject. All that is necessary is, as in analogous
cases, to explain the sense in which the word is
used in application to the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. And here it should be remembered, that all
our language which we use to designate the attri-
butes of God, is necessarily inadequate; and the
most common words in application to the Deity have
a peculiar meaning. This is the fact when we use
the words intellect, will, purpose, love, &c. God's
understanding is infinitely different from ours; the
.will pf God cannc-t be understood as precisely similar
to will in the human mind. And in regard to affec-
tions and passions this is so evident, that many, to
4
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38 THE HOLY TRINITY.
avoid the ascription of any imperfection to the Su-
preme Being, have denied to him every kind of affec-
tion, as well as passion. But, in the use of such
terms, it should be considered that they must not be
taken definitely and strictly, as they apply to man,
but as representing vaguely and indefinitely some-
thing in God which resembles those things in man
for which these words stand. And no other rule, in
the use of the term person, is necessary, when the
word is used in relation to the Supreme Being, than
what is necessary in many other cases. The word
person is used merely to mark a distinction evidently
made in Scripture, and may, in this indefinite sense,
be properly used; because, in relation to Father,
Son, and Spirit, personal pronouns are used, and
personal acts are ascribed to them.
The question respecting the truth of the Trinity
is, however, not to be confounded with the one re-
specting the propriety of the use of the word persons,
which some who hold the doctrine of the Trinity
firmly, have rejected. And some, who nevertheless
believed in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as being
divine, have scrupled to use the word Trinity, be-
cause it is not found in Holy Scripture. Now, while
men receive implicitly all that is taught in Scripture
respecting each of these, we need not contend with
them about the theological terms which shall be em-
ployed.
Though the Trinity is not a doctrine discoverable
by reason, yet we find some vestiges of it in nearly
all ancient systems of Pagan theology, which seems
to indicate that it was handed down by tradition
from the earliest ages of the world. But we do not
adduce this as a fact likely to have any weight with
the anti-trinitarian. Indeed, some have ingeniously
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THE HOLT TRINITY. 39
founded an argument against the doctrine from its
resemblance to Platonism, and other Pagan systems.
But still, no more reasonable account of the triad,
found in most ancient theories of religion, can be
given, than by supposing an early tradition to have
been received on this subject. Our appeal, however,
must be to the infallible oracles of divine revelation ;
and although we find many vestiges of a plurality
of persons in the Godhead, in the Old Testament,
yet as these are not so evident but that they are
liable to dispute, it will save time to proceed at
once to the testimonies which are found in the New
Testament. And our first object will be to show,
that three persons are often mentioned together, by
three distinct names ; and then we will bring con-
vincing arguments to prove that each of these is
God ; and there being but one God, as we have seen,
these three must, in some mysterious way, be
united in one essence.
At the baptism of Christ, the Father spake from
heaven, saying, " This is my beloved son, in whom I
am well pleased ;" and the Holy Ghost descended on
Christ in the form of a dove. Here then we have
Christ visible in the form of man, the Father speaking
of the son in a voice from heaven, and the Holy Ghost,
in a visible form, descending on Christ. Whatever
may be determined respecting the nature of these per-
sons, they are manifestly three in number. The Holy
Ghost did not speak, and the Father did speak, but
did not descend in a visible form ; and, evidently, the
Son was not the person who spoke or descended.
This evident manifestation of three persons at the
baptism of Christ, led one of the Christian fathers to
exclaim, " Let him who would have a proof of the
Trinity go to Jordan."
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40 THE HOLY TRINITY.
The clear distinction of the persons of the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, is again most evidently set
forth in Christ's consolatory discourse to his disciples,
before he suffered, recorded in John xiv. xv. and
xvi., and also in his intercessory prayer, chap. xvii.
"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give
you another Comforter, that shall abide with you
forever ; even the Spirit of truth, whom the world
cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither
knoweth him; but ye know him, for he dwelleth
with you, and shall be in you." Here the Son
prays to the Father for the Comforter, the Spirit.
That there are three mentioned is too evident to
need proof.
Another clear testimony to the truth that there
are three distinct persons in the divine essence,
is found in the form of Christian baptism, which
Christ gave to his apostles, in the commission
which he gave them just before his ascension
to heaven. "Go," said he, "teach all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." These
are among the most solemn and important words
in the New Testament; they contain the commis-
sion under which not only the apostles, but all
ministers of the gospel act, and the form of words
directed to be used in baptism, was intended to
be employed in the administration of this ordin-
ance, through all periods of the church. All persons
who have ever been regularly baptized, have had
these words pronounced over them, while emblemat-
ically, or sacramentally washed from their sins. Into
whose name then have all Christians, from the be-
ginning, been baptized ? Into the name of the Fa-
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THE HOLT TRINITY. 41
ther, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Undoubt-
edly Christians are baptized into the name of God ;
but God is here represented as three. It would in-
deed be incredible that baptism should be in the
name of the Supreme God, of a man or mere crea-
ture, and of a divine attribute. The mention of such
an interpretation is enough to refute it Undoubt-
edly our Lord, in his commission, must have intended
by Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, to designate three
persons. Whether they are all to be considered as
partaking of the divine nature, is not now the imme-
diate object of inquiry, but whether three persons
are designated. The divinity of each will be here-
after proved.
Again, the apostolical benediction, recorded in 2
Cor. xiii. 14, is another conclusive evidence of the
existence of three persons in the Godhead. "The
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you
all. Amen." Here grace is implored of the Son,
love from God the Father, and communion from
the Holy Ghost. It is impossible, by any proper
rules of interpretation, to evade the conclusion, that
three divine persons are here named. Similar proof
we have in Eph. ii. 18. " For through him (Christ)
we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.' '
Here the same three persons are brought into view,
and designated by their appropriate appellatives.
Another passage in which the three persons are dis-
tinctly mentioned together, is, 1 Peter i. 2. " Elect
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through sanctification of the Spirit, and sprinkling of
the blood of Jesus Christ." Here, again, we find the
same three persons clearly distinguished.
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42 THE HOLY TRINITY.
And although the text in 1 John v. 7, has been dis-
puted, on plausible grounds, and the testimony of
existing manuscripts is unfavourable to its authen-
ticity, yet there being positive evidence that ancient
manuscripts which contained it, have been destroyed
or lost, I think it should not be omitted in a sum-
mary of the evidence of the doctrine of the Trinity,
as I have a strong persuasion that it is really a pre-
cious part of inspired Scripture, which we are not at
liberty to abandon,but which was probably insidiously
dropped out of the copies, in the days of Arian ascen-
dency. What confirms me in this opinion is, that it
is evidently referred to both by Tertullian and Cyp-
rian, who lived long before our oldest extant manu-
scripts were written. The words are, "There are
three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the
Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one."
Here we have our whole doctrine expressed, as
clearly as it could be done in words.
The evidence of three distinct persons has now,
we think, been established beyond all reasonable
contradiction, as the doctrine clearly and repeatedly
inculcated in the Scriptures of truth.
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DIVINITY OP CHHIST. 48
CHAPTER VIII.
DIVINITY OP CHRIST.
The proof of the Deity of the Son of God is the
main point in establishing the doctrine of the Trinity;
for if it can be clearly shown that there is a second
person in the divine essence, there will be small
repugnance to the admisssion of a third.
And here it may be observed, that the appellation
"Son of God," is remarkable. A son is always of
the same nature with the father who begat him, and
possesses the same attributes. It is true, Adam, in
Luke's genealogy of Christ, is called the son of God,
by which no more is to be understood but that God
was his immediate Creator. But Christ is called not
only the Son op God, but His "only begotten
Son." (John L 14.) And angels are called "sons of
God," as being immediately created by him; but
the apostle Paul distinguishes the sonship of Christ
from that of angels, in that remarkable passage in
the first chapter of his Epistle to the Hebrews, where
he says, " For unto which of the angels said he at
any time, thou art my Son, this day have I begotten
thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he
shall be to me a Son ? And again, when he bringeth
in the first-begotten into the world, he saith, And let
all the angels of God worship him. And of the
angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and
his ministers a flame of fire. But unto the Son he
saith, Thy throne, God, is forever and ever."
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44 DIVINITY OP CHRIST.
Here we learn that the Son is not one of the angels,
for he is clearly distinguished from them all. Not
only so, but the angels were commanded to worship
him, when he made his first appearance in the world.
Now, he whom angels worship, can be no other
than God. Was it ever heard of, or any where read,
that the angels were commanded to worship one
another ? No : but they did receive a command to
worship the Son. This shows that Christ was not
called Son, merely on account of his miraculous birth,
or his designation to office, as Mediator, or his resur-
rection from the dead. All these may serve to show
that he is the Son of God ; but he was Son from the
beginning — by nature a Son — eternally begotten \ for
as Son, he is to be worshipped by the most exalted
angels of heaven. And while he is addressed by the
Father as a Son, he is emphatically addressed as
God. " Thy throne, God, is forever and ever."
To which of the angels was ever an address like this
made ? As these words are a quotation from Psalm
xlv. 6, by turning to the passage we find, that the
person addressed is called the Kino, and is addressed
as the Most Mighty. There is, moreover, another
argument for the eternity of Christ, contained in this
pregnant passage, which is of the most conclusive
nature. Indeed, it is so cogent, that this being im-
partially weighed, all further arguments seem to be
superfluous. It is derived from the fact, plainly de-
clared by the apostle, and made prominent in several
other parts of Scripture, that Christ, here called the
Son of God, is the Creator of the universe. Surely
he who created all things must be God ; or all dis-
tinction between God and the creature is obliterated.
How do we know that there is a God, but by the
creation ? The idea that the power of creation may
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DIVINITY OP CHRIST. 45
be delegated to a creature, is the same as to suppose
that a creature may be rendered omnipotent and in-
finitely wise ; that is, that a creature may be endowed
with divine attributes; or that there may be^another
God.
And as to the notion that Christ was employed in
creation as an instrument, it is still less reasonable, for
as creation is an instantaneous work of almighjy
power, what place was there for any instrumentality ?
Besides, in the passage under consideration, there is no
allusion to any instrument. It is simply and plainly
declared, " Thou, Lord, in the beginning, hast laid the
foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work
of thy hands." In the second verse, it is indeed said,
" By whom He created the worlds ;" but in the order
of operation, in the persons of the Trinity, the Son is
always represented as acting in conformity with the
will of the Father ; but still as exercising the same
power, and possessing the same knowledge. The very
name Father indicates, that he is primary in order of
existence and of operation : by some, therefore, he has
been called the fountain of the Deity. Thus our Lord
says, " For as the Father hath life in himself, so hath
he given to the Son, to have life in himself." " All
things are delivered to me of my Father, and no man
knoweth the Son but the Father, neither knoweth any
man the Father save the Son, and he to whomsoever
the Son will reveal Him." Here the knowledge of the
Father by the Son, is put on a level with the know-
ledge which the Father has of the Son ; and the na-
ture of the Son is represented as incomprehensible to
all others but the Father, just as the nature of the
Father is incomprehensible to all but the Son. An
equality in the possession of divine attributes is here
as clearly taught, as is possible. Can it be a mere
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46 DIVINITY OF CHRIST.
creature who knows the essence of God, as his essence
is known by God ? Impossible.
But let us attend more particularly to the argument
from the creation of the heavens and the earth, and all
which they contain. There are several other testimo-
nies to this fact, which it may be expedient to bring
into view. In the first chapter of the gospel of John,
Christ, under the name Logos, is not only said to have
been in the beginning with God, but to be God; and the
evangelist goes on to say, " all things were made by
him, and without him was not any thing made that
was made." He is also declared to be the source of
life and of light. " In him was life, and the life was the
light of men" — " That was the true light that light-
eth every man that cometh into the world." And
that there might be no doubt respecting the person
denominated Logos, it is said, "And the word (Logos)
was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld
his glory as the glory of the only begotten of the
Father, full of grace and truth." It is reported by
some of the earliest of the Christian fathers, that John
wrote his gospel for the very purpose of refuting the
errors of certain heretics, who denied the divinity of
the Son. And whether that was the occasion of his
writing or not, he could not have asserted the doctrine
more clearly and explicitly than he has done. And
how do anti-trinitarians evade the force of this pas-
sage ? The Arians, by maintaining that the Son per-
formed the work of creation by a delegated power, or
as an instrument But this interpretation will not suit
the Socinians, and all who deny the existence of Christ
before he was born of Mary. They, therefore, have
invented a gloss, which certainly no common reader
would ever have thought of; and which nothing but
dire necessity could ever have induced any one to adopt
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DIVINITY OP CHRIST. 47
It is, that it is meant that Christ was the author of the
new dispensation, and disposed of and regulated every
thing in the Christian church. When men are driven
to such forced interpretations, it is a clear evidence that
they cannot maintain their ground, by solid argument :
it is a kind of reductio ad absurdum ; and we should
be satisfied to leave the matter there. There is no
need of an elaborate refutation of what so plainly re-
futes itself.
Another remarkable testimony to the fact, that
Christ is the creator of all things, is found in the first
chapter of Paul's epistle to the Colossians. L 15 — 17 :
u Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-
born of every creature. For by him were all things
created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, vis-
ible and invisible ; whether they be thrones, or domin-
ions, or principalities, or powers : all things were cre-
ated by him and for him ; and he is before all things,
and by him all things consist"
Here, not only the creation of the visible universe is
ascribed to the Son, but also all things invisible ; and
lest any should be disposed to confine this work to in-
animate substances, the whole hierarchy of heaven is
declared also to have been created by him. The most
exalted of the celestial host are his creatures. And not
only so, but all things are continually supported by
Him. The expression, " first-born of every creature,"
has misled many to think that this scripture asserted
that Christ was the first formed creature ; but the most
judicious critics have shown, that this is not the proper
meaning of the original term ; but the true sense is,
" first begotten before all creation •," that is,' from eter-
nity. The same idea is expressed, in the last verse
cited, « and he is before all things." " From the foun-
dation of the world" — " before the foundation of the
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48 IHVINITY OP CHRIST.
world" — " before all things," are the modes of speech
by which an eternity past, is expressed in scripture.
One would think, that none could resort to the forced in-
terpretation which has been put on the passage in John ;
but what else can the Unitarian do ? He has no other
refuge from the convincing force of the testimony, un-
less he should have recourse to the supposition, that
the whole passage is spurious ; but there is no proof
of any such thing. No text in the Bible is more cer-
tainly authentic. The Unitarian is therefore obliged,
as before, to pretend that the apostle is not speaking
of the creation of the world, but of the setting up the
gospel kingdom. If absurdity were stamped on the
face of this interpretation when applied to the passage
in John, what shall we say of it here, where the hea-
vens and the earth are expressly mentioned ; and not
only so, but things visible and invisible ; and finally,
the glorious hosts of heaven, angels, dominions, princi-
palities and powers, are mentioned among his works.
And all these he upholds by his power. Is there any
passage in the Bible, where the creation of all things
is more expressly and particularly ascribed to the
Father, than here to the Son ? To attempt to apply
the language here used, in the midst of a plain
didactic discourse, to the setting up of the Christian
church, or introducing a new dispensation, is so
unreasonable at first view, that there is really no need
of a refutation. What could be meant by the heavens
and the earth ? — What by things visible and invisible?
What by the names of the celestial orders ? If such
an interpretation could be admitted, then the testimo-
nies of the Holy Scriptures would be utterly useless.
No text, on any subject could be brought forward in
proof of the unity, 6r of any of the attributes of Goxfy
which might not be turned aside with as much show
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DIVINITY OP CHRIST. 49
of reason, as is exhibited in this interpretation. In the
text in the gospel of John, they demurred, because
the word used for made, was not the one commonly
used to express a creation out of nothing, but here we
have the very word, used by the Seventy to express the
work of creation in the first chapter of Genesis. In
the former case, the objection had no force, but in this
there is no foundation for it. This wild notion, by
which, in the foregoing testimonies, they would have
us by the creation of all things in heaven and earth, to
understand the setting up a new kingdom, or introdu-
cing a new dispensation after the advent of Christ,
cannot possibly be applied to the text in the first chap-
ter of the epistle to the Hebrews ; for there it is de-
clared, that the heaven and earth of which he spake,
the creation of which he ascribed to the Son of
God, should perish — and that they should wax old aaf
doth a garment, and that as a vesture they should be
folded up and changed. But surely this cannot apply
to the kingdom of Christ, or the new creation, for this
is everlasting.
If there is a doctrine plainly taught in the Bible, this
is one, that Christ is the Creator of all things : and if
so, he must be truly God : we have no higher idea of
God than Creator of heaven and earth. If another be-
sides the true God may be the Creator, then another
besides God possesses those attributes by the manifes-
tation of which in the works of nature, we know that
there is a God, and by which his almighty power and
infinite wisdom are made known.
It seems unnecessary to adduce other arguments, as
this is of itself as demonstrative of the deity of Christ,
as if we had a thousand. The mind which can resist
this would resist any number. If it were necessary,
we could adduce hundreds of texts in which the doe-
5
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50 PERSONALITY OP THE HOLT SPIRIT.
trine is expressed or implied. We shall, therefore, con-
clude by observing, that Christ is called Jehovah — the
great God — The mighty God, the true God. And argu-
ments for his divinity might be derived from his mira-
cles — from his glorious work of redemption-^from the
worship and obedience demanded, and from his being
appointed the Judge of the quick and the dead— of
angels and of men. But it is deemed unnecessary to
deduce arguments from all these topics, as what has
been said is sufficient
IWVWWX/WN/V
CHAPTER IX.
PERSONALITY 07 THE HOLT SPIRIT.
ThS Divinity of the Holy Spirit may be established
by arguments of the same kind as have been adduced
in support of the Deity of the Son ; but it does not
seem necessary to go over the same ground again ;
especially, as at the present there are none, as far as
vfe know, who maintain that the Holy Spirit is a
created being. Anti-trinitarians of the present day,
admit that the Spirit is divine, but not a distinct per-
son from the Father. As the spirit of a man is the
man himself, so they think that the Spirit of God is
God, or the wisdom or power of God. Another rea-
son why it is not necessary now to enter into an
elaborate argument to establish the divinity of the
Spirit is, that reason makes no greater objection to a
Trinity than a duality in the Godhead. If the proofs
of the deity of the Son are conclusive, the same kind
of evidence will readily be received in* favour of a
third person. We shall, therefore, occupy the space
which can be allotted for this point, to a considora*
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PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 51
tion of the proofs of the distinct personality of the
Holy Spirit. And here the reader will recollect the
observations made respecting the sense in which the
word person is used, when applied to the divine
essence. We do not pretend that we are able to
form definite and clear conceptions on this subject*
Among creatures, where we find an intelligent, vol*
untary agent, we call that being a person. And such
persons are spoken of by proper names, and by per-
sonal pronouns, which are used instead of the name.
John is possessed of reason and will, and he pursues
such objects as are agreeable to his taste. John is a
person. Every one who is constituted like John,
however he may differ from him in other respects, is
also called a person. We find in Scripture three, to
whom divine •attributes and works are ascribed, and
each of whom has an appropriate name, and is fre-
quently represented as acting, feeling, and speaking ;
and to each of these the pronouns used in reference
to persons are often applied. And they are not dif-
ferent names of the same person, because they are,
in a number of cases, all mentioned in the same sen*
tence ; and they are represented as speaking to each
other, and as sending or promising to send another.
And there are appropriate acts ascribed to each. It
cannot be supposed, that, if the Holy Spirit were not
a distinct person, this mode of speaking of him,
in the Holy Scriptures, would be kept up whenever
he is mentioned. Sometimes, by a lively figure,
that which is not a person is personified, and intro-
duced as thinking, feeling, seeing, hearing, and speak-
ing ; but no one is ever deceived by this liberty of
speech; but if this personification were kept up
whenever this inanimate, unintelligent being was
mentioned, it would tend only to confusion and error.
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52 PERSONALITY OF THE HOLT SPIRIT.
But this is never done in regard to such beings as
are not possessed of intelligence.
Let it then be kept distinctly in view, that the
Holy Spirit is either a person, or a divine attribute,
as none now are found maintaining that the Holy
Spirit is a creature ; and if he were, he would still
be a person. What we now wish to establish is, the
distinct personality of the Holy Spirit.
The personality of the Paraclete, who is the
Holy Ghost, is exceedingly manifest from the words
of Christ, where he promises to pray the Father to
send the Holy Spirit, (John xiv. 16, 17,) where the
personal pronoun is used to designate the Holy Ghost,
no less than six times, in two verses. "And I
will pray the Father, and he shall give you another
Comforter, that he may abide with you forever:
Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot
receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth
him : but ye know him ; for he dwelleth with you,
and shall be in you." And again* in the 26th verse,
" But the Comforter, (Paraclete,) which is the Holy
Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he
shall teach you all things," &c. Also, in chap. xvi.
7 — 14. " Nevertheless I tell you the truth ; it is ex-
pedient for you that I go away; for if I go not
away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but
if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when
he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of
righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because
they believe not on me ; of righteousness, because
I go to my Father, and ye see me no more ; of judg-
ment, because the prince of this world is judged. I
have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot
bear them now. Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of
truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth : for
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PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIKIT. 59
he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever ho
shall hear, that shall he speak : and he will shew
you things to come. He shall glorify me : for he
shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you."
In this last passage,the personal pronoun is applied
to the Holy Spirit, nearly a dozen times. And there
is a peculiar force in the original, which cannot be
preserved in English. The Greek word for Spirit is
of the neuter gender, but the inspired writer, instead
of making use of a pronoun of the corresponding
gender, constantly uses the pronoun of the mascu-
line gender. No conceivable reason can be assigned
for this, except that the Spirit is really a person, a
divine person, and therefore should be represented
by the masculine pronoun.
How would it sound to attribute to any divine at-
tribute, or operation, what is ascribed to the Holy
Spirit, throughout the Scriptures ? " I will pray to>
the Father, and he will send his wisdom, and he
shall teach you all things. He will not speak of
himself, but he will take of mine and shew it unto
you. And when wisdom is come, he will convince
the world of sin, of righteousness, and judgment."
" Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie unto Wis-
dom ?" " He that blasphemeth against Wisdom, it
shall never be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor
in that which is to come." "As Wisdom said by Da-
vid." u Wisdom said, separate me Barnabas and Saul
to the work to which I have appointed them." " I
baptize you in the name of the Father, Son, and
Wisdom." "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
love of God, and the communion of Wisdom, be with
you all." The same incongruity, or rather absurdity,
would follow from substituting any other word ex-
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54 PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
pressive, not of a person, but an attribute, or an in-
fluence, or operation, for the name of Holy Ghost,
or Holy Spirit, in all the places where it occurs. We
never can receive the Sacred Scriptures as a certain
rule of faith, intended to guide all classes of people^
without admitting that the Holy Spirit is spoken of
as a person. It is true, there are passages in which,
if there were no others, we might be led to suppose
that the Spirit was a gift, or divine influence shed on
the minds of men ; but all these texts can be much
more easily explained, so as to harmonize with those
which ascribe personal acts to the Holy Spirit, than
those be reconciled to the hypothesis that the Spirit
is an attribute, or an influence. When we read of
the Spirit dwelling in us, being given without mea-
sure, being quenched, &c, it is easy to understand
that the operations and influences of this divine agent
are intended.
We conclude then, that, according to a fair inter-
pretation of the Holy Scriptures, there are three per-
sons, each being made known by a distinct name,
and to each operations and offices ascribed, which
are peculiar ; and yet, in all works, there is a perfect
concurrence of three distinct agents. And as we
have clear evidence, that there is one God, and none
beside, and as to each of the three, divine attributes
are ascribed in Scripture, these three must be one
God, although in what way they are one and three
we do not know, and do not pretend to explain. It
is, however, no greater mystery than God's eternity,
self-existence, and omnipresence. All we need to
know is, what God hath declared in his word. Hath
Christ said, " I and my Father are one," and shall
we not believe it, although we cannot understand nor
explain how they are one ? Christ says, " He that
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PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 55
hath seen me, hath seen the Father." Here are
two, the Father and the Son, pud yet they are
so identified, that he that hath seen the one,
hath seen the other also. Here is a fact plainly
stated; this we are bound to believe; but how
this can be, or what is the nature of this union,
we are not required to understand, or to believe
any thing respecting its nature. And if the Fa-
ther and the Son are one God, the Holy Spirit,
to whom divine attributes and works are also as-
cribed, must be one with the Father and the Son.
Indeed, Unitarians admit this now. They agree
that the Holy Spirit is God himself. His person-
ality, however, they deny. But we have proved
that the Holy Spirit is a person, because he is
constantly spoken of as performing the acts which
none but a person can perform. Let it be ad-
mitted, that the word person, in application to
the Spirit, must not be taken in the same pre-
cise, definite sense, as when applied to men and
angels. The Spirit searches — the Spirit understands
— the Spirit speaks — the Spirit calls and appoints
to the ministry — the Spirit reproves, teaches, guides,
comforts, intercedes, inspires, sanctifies — sheds abroad
the love of God. The Spirit witnesses with our
spirits — the Spirit quickens — the Spirit may be
grieved — may be sinned against, distinctly from sins
against the Son.
What an adorable being is the Triune God ! How
gloriously mysterious in his being, attributes, opera-
tions, and personal acts ! How little are we capable
of knowing of this infinite Being. " None by search-
ing can find out the Almighty to perfection." Where
the feelings of the heart are right, the incomprehen-
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56 PERSONALITY OP THE HOLY SPIRIT.
sible nature of the divine existence causes no obstruc-
tion to genuine devotion. Indeed, the soul of man
is so constituted as to require an incomprehensible
Being as the object of worship. Profound adoration
is the very feeling which corresponds with this attri-
bute. Were it not so, the angels in heaven would
be perplexed and unhappy ; for the more is known
of God, the more mysteries are perceived in the
divine character. ." Clouds and darkness are around
about him, but justice and judgment are the habi-
tation of his throne." He is also represented as
€i dwelling in light which is inaccessible," and to
which no mortal can approach. How condescending
is God to furnish us with an object of worship in our
own nature, where the attributes of Deity shine forth
in the face of a man like ourselves. This is truly
the grand mystery of Godliness ; " God manifest in
the flesh ;" " the fulness of the Godhead dwelling
in Christ ;" so that he is both God and man in the
same person. And perhaps this mode of exhibiting
the divine attributes in humanity may be of unspeak-
able importance to all intelligent creatures in heaven.
It may have given them an opportunity of knowing
much more of God than they ever knew before, or
could know in any other way. The doctrine of re-
demption is not only useful to the redeemed, but to
all the hierarchy of heaven. No creature can know
any thing of the nature of God but what he is pleased
to reveal 5 and the method by which he makes him-
self known, is by his works and dispensations. No
creature can penetrate the divine essence, and search
the deep things of God. That the Son knows the
Father, as he is known by him, furnishes a conclu-
sive argument of his divinity. And that the Spirit
searcheth the deep things of God, is also a sure argu-
ment of his divinity.
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CREATION. 57
CHAPTER X.
CREATION.
The first information which the Bible gives us, is of
the creation of all things out of nothing,in the space of
six days. No other book gives any satisfactory ac-
count of the creation of the world, or of the origin of
the human race. The Bible does not profess to inform
us when the substance of the heavens and the earth,
was created ; but it assures us that it had a beginning,
and that God was its creator. When the time arrived
for the creation of man upon the earth, the confused
and shapeless mass which was covered with darkness,
under the forming and creative agency of the Almighty,
began to assume a new appearance. And the effects
produced were not wrought instantly, but day after
day, for six consecutive days. On the first day, light
was created, for God said " Let there be light, and
there was light. ,> On the second day, God formed the
firmament or atmosphere, which separated between
the water in the seas, and that held suspended in the
clouds, or invisibly in the air. On the third day, the
waters were collected into the basin prepared for them,
and were separated from the earth or dry land, which
now became visible ; and on this day, also, the earth
was planted with every kind of herb yielding seed, and
tree yielding fruit after their kinds respectively, with
the power of propagating their species. On the fourth
day, the luminaries of heaven were formed, or then
began to shine upon the earth ; the sun to rule the day,
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58 CREATIONS
\
and the moon to rule the night; and also the stars. If
it be asked how light could exist and form the day, be-
fore the creation of the sun, it must be confessed that
our knowledge of the elements of matter is very indis-
tinct and imperfect The question proceeds on the sup-
position that light is a substance which comes out of the
sun by emanation : but it is much more reasonable to
believe, that light is nothing more than a certain con-
dition of a widely diffused fluid, which when excited
produces in us the sense of sight; just as another fluid
when agitated, by its undulations produces in us the
sense of hearing. On this subject we assert nothing;
but if the theory mentioned will remove the difficulty,
it is a proper answer to the question. But even if the
sun were a body of light, the substance of light might
have been created before it was conglomerated into one
great body; or, the sun might not have been visible till
the fourth day. On the fifth day, the water and air
were replenished with living inhabitants, with constitu-
tions, instincts, and senses, exactly suited to the element
in which they were placed. On the sixth day, the earth
was stocked with beasts, and reptiles of every species.
And, finally, a council was, as it were, called in
heaven, when the crowning work of creation was
about to be produced ; that is, the adorable Trinity
deliberated, speaking after the manner of men. " And
God said, Let us make man in our image, and after
our likeness, and let them have dominion over the
fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over
the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every
thing that creepeth on the earth."
As God is a spirit, and has no bodily parts, what is
here said of his u image and likeness" must relate to
his spiritual and moral nature. As man was created
an immortal, intelligent spirit, in this respect, he bears
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CREATION. 59
a resemblance to his Creator ; but we have stronger
evidence for referring these words to the moral image
of God. For the apostle Paul, when speaking of the
renewal of man in the image of God, makes it to con-
sist in " righteousness and true holiness/' (Eph. iv. 24.)
And, in another place, he makes this image to consist
in "knowledge:" "And have put on the new man
which is renewed in knowledge, after the image of Him
that created him," in which last words, there is a plain
reference to the history of man's creation,in Genesis. -
But, as it was not judged to be good that man
should be alone, his Creator, in great kindness, formed
for him a suitable companion, a woman taken from his
own side, a help meet for him, and the mother of all
living. To the man was given the name, Adam, the
import of which is " red," and to the woman the name
Eve, which signifies " living."
God pronounced all that he had created " good,"
« very good." Nothing imperfect ever came from the
hands of God. All creatures were not made equal ;
and in respect to constitution some are more perfect
than others ; but every thing is perfect in its kind. In
creation, as far as it is subjected to our view, there is a
beautiful gradation of creatures from the most exalted
angel down to the minutest atom ; and among anima-
ted creatures there is a scale of perfection, according to
which one living creature rises above another by air
most insensible degrees. And among the creatures
there is observable a mutual dependence of one upon
another ; and in the whole there is an astonishing har-
mony ; or if there should be the appearance of disorder
and confusion in some things, it must be attributed to
our ignorance ; for as far as we can understand the
works of God, every thing seems to be in its proper
place, and governed by laws adapted to its nature.
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60 GOOD ANGELS.
CHAPTER XI.
GOOD ANGELS.
Although reason cannot assure us, that there
are in the universe creatures of an order supe-
rior to man ; yet all analogy is favourable to such
a doctrine. As we find that below the human
race, there is a gradation of animated beings, down
to the lowest forms of organized life, it would
be strange indeed, if the infinite space above man
should be entirely unoccupied. And as the Deity
is a pure spirit, without bodily parts, it would
seem reasonable to think, that he has made some
species of creatures, of a purely spiritual essence.
These remarks are made, because Rationalists are
generally disposed to deny the real existence of angels;
whereas, professing to be guided by reason, they ought
readily to receive this doctrine, which is so clearly re-
vealed in the Bible. It may properly be mentioned
here, that Jews, Mohammedans, and Pagans, all con-
cur in believing in a species of creatures of nobler ca-
pacities than belong to the human race. This almost
universal agreement, is probably derived from an-
cient tradition ; but if from the suggestions of reason,
it is still favourable to the doctrine of Scripture, on
this subject.
The word translated angel properly means, a
messenger. It is, therefore, frequently applied to
human beings, in which cases it is literally translated
messenger. And not only so, but we have abun-
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GOOD ANGELS. 61
dant proof, that the word is also used to designate
the Son of God, the angel that appeared to Abraham,
and is expressly called Jehovah ; also, the same that
spoke to Moses from the burning bush, and said, I am
the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob ; who is also
called an angel. This is the angel who led the Israel-
ites through the wilderness by a fiery pillar and pro-
tecting cloud, and often appeared to them in glory, at
the tabernacle. This was the angel, in whom was
" the name of Jehovah," and who is called by Malachi,
" the messenger," or " angel of the Covenant."
Many theologians have also maintained, that Mi-
chael the Archangel was not a created being, but the
Son of God ; for this opinion, however, the reasons are
not conclusive : yet there is no propriety in speaking
of archangels, for only one is ever mentioned in the
Holy Scriptures.
There can be no doubt that angels are created be-
ings, although we are not informed when they were
brought into existence. It is probable, however, that
the whole universe, with all the various species of be-
ings, was produced at once, since the whole appears
to form one grand system. But we must not pretend
to be wise above what is written.
Angels are moral agents and accountable beings, or
they could not be holy, and could not have sinned, as
many of them have done. They were doubtless,
placed when created,in a state of probation, as man was.
Indeed, every rational creature, made under a moral
law, is naturally in a state of probation; that is, obedi-
ence is required of him, and a reward promised, and a
penalty threatened in case of disobedience. All creatures
are mutable, and, therefore, all creatures, however ex-
alted, are capable of sinning when left to themselves*
Unless God, in infinite kindness and condescension,
6
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69 GOOD ANGELS*
limited the period of probation, it would last forev-
er; as forever, the creature left to himself would be liable
to sin : but it has pleased the goodness of God to limit
the probation of his moral subjects to a certain period,
probably short, after which,those who stand the trial
and retain their integrity, are confirmed in a state of
immutable holiness and happiness. Those angels who
kept their first estate, and resisted the temptation by
which many of their companions were seduced from
their allegiance, are not only called " holy angels," but
" elect angels." What proportion of the number fell
is not revealed ; though the Romanists pretend to de-
termine this and many other points, for which they
have na authority from Scripture. The number of
good angels, we know, is very great. Christ said, that
he could pray to his Father, and he would send to his
aid more than twelve legions of angels; which would
be more than seventy thousand. And at the birth of
our Saviour, there were present with the Shepherds, a
great multitude of the heavenly host. And in the book
of Daniel and of the Revelation, we read of « thou-
sands of thousands and ten times thousands." And in
the xii. chapter of the Hebrews, the apostle speaks of
"an innumerable company of angels."
They are possessed of wisdom and intelligence supe-
rior to that of man, and continually contemplate the
divine glory as manifested in the work of creation ;
and especially, in the work of redemption. " Which
things," says Peter, " the angels desire to look into."
And in the Revelation of John, they are represented
as encircling the throne of the Almighty, and ascribing
unto Him that sitteth on the throne and to the Lamb,
" power, and riches, and wisdom, and honour, and
glory, and blessing."
That the angels are guardians of the children of God,
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GOOD ANGELS. 63
is clearly taught in the Holy Scriptures. " The angel
of the Lord encampeth around them that fear Him
and delivereth them. (Ps. xxxix. 7.) " For He shall
give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all
thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands,
lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. " (Ps. xci. 1 1,
12.) And it seems to be intimated by our Saviour that
particular angels have the charge of individuals ; for
when speaking of children that believe, he says,
" Take heed that ye despise not one of these little
ones, for I say unto you, that in heaven, their angels
do always behold the face of my Father who is in
heaven." (Matt xviii. 10.) But whether every
saint has an angel to attend him alone, is not revealed,
and the thing is not probable : for aught we know,
one guardian angel may be sufficient for many indi-
viduals. Neither is it necessary to suppose, that
guardian angels are always present with their wards :
it is sufficient that they frequently visit them. And it
would seem clear from Scripture, that all the holy
angels are occupied in this service ; for, in the epistle
to the Hebrews, we read, " Are they not all minister-
ing spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be
heirs of salvation ?" (Heb. i. 14.) The Romanists^
indeed, confine this ministry to the very lowest of the
nine orders of their celestial hierarchy ; but for their
doctrine, they have no solid foundation ; and it is re-
futed by the declaration of our Lord, already quoted,
that the guardian angels of the little ones who believe,
do always behold the face of God in heaven. These
must, therefore, be of the highest order ; and the word
angels, in the New Testament, is a general term,
comprehending all orders.
This leads us at once to the inquiry, whether there
are different ranks and orders of good angels. While
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64 BAD ANGELS.
i
we reject the hierarchy of the Romish priests, which
has no foundation in Scripture, we cannot but admit,
that according to the testimony of Paul, there are sev-
eral ranks, or orders of angels, but how they differ
from one another, we cannot tell. All we know is,
that the names by which they are designated and dis-
tinguished, import high station and great power and
dignity. They are called, " thrones, dominions, prin-
cipalities, and powers ;" but exalted as they are, the
Son of God is declared to be their Creator.
As the word " angel" signifies a messenger, some
are of opinion, that the "spirits of the just made per-
fect" may be of the number employed in missions to
the earth ; and especially as guardians. But nothing
of this kind can be learned from the Sacred Scriptures*
CHAPTER XII.
BAD ANGELS.
There is an evil being, often mentioned in Scripture,
both in the Old and New Testament, called Satan, the
devil, and Beelzebub, and by other significant names.
But he is always spoken of as one : the original
Greek for devil (Aca/fox*) never being found in the
plural, to signify devils ; though the plural is used in
the New Testament for slanderers. It is true, the
word devils, in the plural, is often read in our ver-
sion ; but the original thus translated, is an entirely
different word, and would more properly be rendered
demons. From this some have been disposed to
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BAD ANGELS. 65
maintain, that these demons were of an entirely dif-
ferent nature from the person called Diabolus and
Satan; and some have conjectured that they were
the departed spirits of wicked men. But there is
little foundation in the Scriptures for these conjec-
tures. Satan is no doubt greatly superior to all the
other evil spirits ; but whether of a different species
we cannot tell. One individual of the same species
may be endowed with powers far above the rest
An opinion which has more probability is, that Sa-
tan, in a state of innocence, was an archangel, or
prince over a large number of the celestial host ; and
that by his influence, those subject to his authority
were seduced from their allegiance, and fell with
him in the same transgression. For he is still called
"the prince of the devils" — "the god of this world,"
"the prince of the power of the air," "the spirit
that worketh in the children of disobedience," " the
adversary that goeth about seeking whom he may
devour." And, what comes nearer to the point, we
read of hell being originally prepared for " the devil
and his angels." And as we know that evil spirits
are very numerous, we may infer, that they are all
in subjection to this prince of darkness ; whether wil-
lingly, or unwillingly, it would be vain to inquire.
And this will account for what, to many has appeared
difficult to be understood, how Satan can tempt so
many persons, all over the world, at once ; it would
seem, at first view, that he was omnipresent. But
if he has at his command thousands of emissaries, or
even if this host of evil spirits act independently of
him, the difficulty will be removed. It ought, how-
ever, to be remembered, that a spirit can pass from
place to place more rapidly than the light; and
Satan may be carrying on his temptations in America
6*
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66 BAD ANGELS.
this moment, and the next he may be in Europe,
and then in Africa or Asia, and back again, in the
twinkling of an eye.
The Scriptures make it certain, that our first parents
were seduced by the devil, in the form of the ser-
pent ; and that the curse denounced on the serpent
related chiefly to him. In the book of Revelation,
he is called " that old serpent the devil ;" and by our
Lord it is declared, that " he was a murderer from
the beginning," and " a liar and the father of it,"
which can have no other reference than to the bring-
ing death on our first parents, and their posterity ;
and to the lie — the first ever told in this world — by
which he deceived the woman, when he said, " Thou
shalt not surely die." And for these reasons he is
called "a murderer," and "the father of lies."
How great his malice is against the people of God,
and what injuries he would inflict upon them, if
permitted, may be learned from the book of Job.
At the advent of our Saviour, he seems to have
been let loose in an unusual manner ; for " the Son of
God was manifested to destroy the works of the
devil," and therefore the powers of darkness were
permitted to exert their malice and cunning, in a de-
gree greater than at any other period. As Christ
came to accomplish a salvation which the first Adam
had failed to secure, there was a propriety in his
being exposed to the temptations of the same adver-
sary who had overcome our first representative.
Accordingly. Satan made an insidious attack on our
Lord, as soon as he came up from the waters of bap-
tism ; and he was led into the wilderness by the
Spirit for this very purpose. But in this assault, he
was completely repulsed ; and when our Substitute
died on the cross, which Satan had brought about
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BAD ANGELS. 67
by entering into Judas, the serpent's head was com-
pletely bruised by the Seed of the woman, whilst he
could do no more than bruise the heel of the God-
man Mediator. In the view of this victory, Christ
said, on a certain occasion, " I saw Satan as light-
ning fall from heaven." And again, "Now is the
prince of this world judged."
Whilst Christ was on earth many persons were
possessed of demons, who, entering into them, agi-
tated and convulsed their bodies in a very hideous
manner ; and so governed the bodies of the miserable
sufferers, that they became mere instruments of the
evil spirits, who made use of their tongues to utter
what the demons wished. The power of our Saviour
was manifested, frequently and triumphantly, in
ejecting the unclean spirits from the bodies in which
they had taken up their abode. Sometimes, many
would take possession of one person. In one case,
a certain demoniac, upon being asked his name, an-
swered, "Legion, because we are many." And in
another case, seven devils were cast out of one wo-
man, who became eminent for her tender love to her
Saviour. And our Lord mentions a case where a
demon, for a time, left the person possessed, and
wandering about in dry places, and finding no rest,
said, " I will return to my house, whence I came
out ; and taking seven other spirits more wicked than
himself, he returned and found his house ready for
him, swept and garnished, and they went in and
dwelt there; and the last state of that man was
worse than the first."
We are not to suppose that the mere demoniacal
possession of a person was a crime ; or, that what
was said or done by a demoniac, would be charged
on the man or woman possessed ; but these possess-
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68 BAD ANGELS.
ions were probably the punishment of sins which
they had committed ; or, as in case of the blind man,
" that the works of God might be manifest in them,"
Because the effects produced on the human body by
these possessions greatly resemble certain diseases,
such as insanity and epilepsy, to which the human
frame is subject, some learned men have maintained,
that what are called demoniacal possessions in the
New Testament, were nothing but incurable dis-
eases, and allege, that the miracle is as real upon
this hypothesis, as on the other. This is true ; but
the objection to this opinion is, that it undermines
the truth of the Gospel history. If nothing more
was said than that certain demoniacs were healed,
this hypothesis might be admitted. For we read,
that among others who were healed by our Saviour,
were lunatics, and yet, no educated man now be-
lieves that madness is produced by the moon. But
in regard to demoniacal possessions, the evangelists
relate conversations which passed between them and
our Lord ; and, in one instance, where there were
many in one man, they entreated that they might
not be sent out of the country, but should be permit-
ted to enter into a numerous herd of swine, which
were on the mountain, near the lake ; and permission
being given, the herd of swine ran violently down a
precipice into the sea, and were drowned. If all this is
to be taken as. a mere accommodation to Jewish preju-
dices, then we can have no certainty of any of the
facts related by the evangelists. And, indeed, the
cfensure would fall back on our Saviour himself, who
continually speaks of demoniacs as persons really
possessed by unclean spirits. And as a further proof
of the reality of such possessions, it may be remarked,
that the demons acknowledged Christ to be the Son of
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BAD ANGELS. 69
God ; and that in a country where the people knew
him not, and begged him to depart from their coasts.
It is expressly said, that upon the approach of Jesus,
the demon cried out, " What have I to do with thee,
Jesus, thou Son of God, the most high? I adjure
thee, by God, that thou torment me not." And he
asked him, " What is thy name ?" and he answered,
saying, " My name is legion, for we are many. And
he besought him much that he would not send them
away out of the country. Now there was nigh the
mountains a great herd of swine feeding, and all the
devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine,
that we may enter into them. And forthwith Jesus
gave them leave, and the unclean spirits went out
and entered into the swine, and the herd ran vio-
lently down a steep place, and perished in the sea."
Now, if any one, upon a careful perusal of this
narrative, can persuade himself that these were
no real spirits, but that it was simply a case of
insanity, and that demons are introduced in accom-
modation to the common prejudices of the Jews, he
will have adopted a principle of interpretation which
will go far towards subverting the whole gospel
history. For, why may it not be as reasonably sup-
posed, that when Christ speaks of the resurrection of
the body, or of a future judgment, he is merely utter-
ing opinions common among the Pharisees, the pre-
dominant sect of the Jews ? In answer to the allega-
tion, that the symptoms were precisely the same,
as of diseases which are still often met with, it may
be replied that the demons might be permitted to pro-
duce these very diseases, as we know that these
malignant spirits are capable of producing diseases
of any kind, if permitted without restraint to ope-
rate with the power which naturally belongs to them,
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70 BAD ANGELS.
as we see in the case of Job, and of the woman
healed by our Saviour, on the Sabbath day, " whom,''
said he, " Satan hath bound, lo ! these eighteen years."
And, in some of these diseases, as they now occur,
we know too little about their real causes to make it
the ground for argument. Physicians are very little
acquainted with the causes of diseases of every spe-
cies. All they can ascertain by the most accurate
examination is, the disease itself, or the derangement
of some part of the human system. But in many
cases, they can acquire no knowledge of the cause
of that disorder ; and for any thing we know, evil
spirits may now, sometimes, have a power over
the bodies of men, by permission. We do not assert
this as a fact, but only that the thing is not impos-
sible, nor altogether improbable.
But our principal concern with the existence of
evil spirits, does not relate to their power to injure
the body, but their cunning and malice in tempting
men to sin. As Satan tempted our Lord, so he did
his disciples. He took complete possession of Judas,
by his consent, and induced him to commit the most
enormous crime on record. He also tempted Peter,
and for a season overcame him, and had he not been
preserved from utter apostasy, by the intercession of
his Lord, we have reason to think that his case would
have been as desperate as that of Judas. Christ
says, "Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have
you, to sift you as wheat, but I have prayed for
you, that thy faith fail not." And when Ananias
and Sapphira were guilty of an enormous crime, in
lying to the Holy Ghost, Peter, in his address, said,
"Why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie unto the
Holy Ghost ?" And that true believers have to en-
dure a severe conflict with these, powers of darkness
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BAD ANGELS. 71
is exceedingly evident from what Paul says, in
his Epistle to the Ephesians. "Put on the whole
armour of God, that ye may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil \ for we wrestle not
against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of
this world, against spiritual wickedness in high
places." He exhorts, " to take the shield of faith to
quench the fiery darts of the wicked." It is hence
manifest, that Christians are surrounded by a host of
spiritual enemies, of whom the devil is the leader ;
and it would seem that there are the same orders
among the fallen, as among the blessed angels. They
are described as "principalities, powers, and rulers,
and as spiritual wickedness in high places." And in
2 Cor. ii. 11, Paul cautions those to whom he wrote,
Lest Satan should get an advantage of us ; for we
are not ignorant of his devices." And Peter recog-
nizes the existence and malice of the same invisible
enemy, in his exhortation to Christians. " Be sober,
be vigilant, for your adversary, the devil, as a roar-
ing lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may de-
vour." And Paul exhorts the Ephesians, " Neither
give place to the devil," that is, do not yield to him;
resist him. The same exhortation, in substance, is
given by James. " Resist the devil and he will flee
from thee." This doctrine of spiritual enemies
watching our path and seeking our destruction, is,
at first view, very appalling ; until we recollect, that
the Captain of our salvation is able to bruise Satan
under our feet ; yea, has already conquered him, and
has him completely under his control, and has pro-
mised to his people " that they shall not be tempted
above what they are able to bear/' and that " with
the temptation he will make a way for their escape."
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72 BAD ANGELS.
But if the real Christian is thus exposed to the
temptations of the evil one, what must be the condi-
tion of impenitent men ? The Scriptures are also
very explicit and full on this point. They are said
to be " led captive by the devil at his will." Those
who are " dead in trespasses and sins," are described as
" walking according to the course of this world, ac-
cording to the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedi-
ence." When the gospel is preached, Satan taketh
away the word that was sown in the hearts of the
hearers. He is also said to "blind the minds of
those who believe not, lest the light of the glorious
gospel of Christ should shine into them." And when
men are converted, they are translated from the
power of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear
Son. " He that committeth sin is of the devil, for
the devil sinneth from the beginning." " Ye are of
your father the devil, and the works of your father
ye will do." " When a strong man armed keepeth his
palace, his goods are in peace." Wretched, indeed, is
the condition of those who are under the power of
such a malignant spirit. They are willing slaves to
the most cruel of masters.
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PROVIDENCE OP GOD, 73
CHAPTER XIII.
PROVIDENCE OF GOD.
The providence of God is " his most holy, wise, and
powerful preserving and governing all his creatures
and all their actions."
All creatures are necessarily dependent on the Crea-
tor for their continued existence. If he should with-
draw his supporting hand, they would cease to be. If
we admit that God in wisdom made the world, he had
some end in view in the works which by his power
he produced : it is most certain, therefore, that he will
so direct and govern his creatures,that the end designed
shall be accomplished. Being perfect in wisdom and
power, he is able to order all events, and the actions
of all creatures, in such a manner as to attain the end
which he purposed to himself in the beginning. To
suppose that his purpose failed of its accomplishment,
or that the actual state of things in the universe is dif-
ferent from the original plan of the Creator, would be
attended with so many absurd consequences, that the
idea should not for a moment be admitted. Such an
opinion would detract essentially from the wisdom or
power of the Creator, and would destroy all confidence
in him as the Governor of the world ; for if disconcer-
ted and disappointed in the execution of his plan, in
one instance, there can be no security that the same
will not happen again and again, until every thing
shall fall into disorder ; so that the end proposed to
himself by the Creator, shall be for ever frustrated.
7
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74 PROVIDENCE OP GOD.
The only reason which has induced any to entertain
the opinion that the plan of the Almighty has been
disconcerted, is the introduction of sin into the world
by the actions of free agents. It has been assumed as
a principle, that God is not only not the author of sin,
which is true, but that, consistently with his holiness,
he could not form a purpose, that it should be permit-
ted to exist. Though the motive which has led many
to maintain that sin has come into the world in oppo-
sition to the purpose of God is good, yet the opinion is
utterly untenable, in consistency with the perfections
of Jehovah. It would make it necessary to believe,
not only that he did not design that evil should exist,
but that he did not foresee the event $ for if he had
foreseen it he could have prevented it, if in no other
way yet by omitting to bring into existence a creature
capable of frustrating his plan ; or by producing a crea-
ture who, he foreknew, would not transgress. We
must believe, therefore, that the purposes of God can-
not fail of ineir accomplishment, and hence, that he not
only foresaw, but determined to suffer his creatures, in
the exercise of their freedom, to commit sin. Yet this
permission does not imply that he was the author of
sin, or that he can look upon it with the least favour
or approbation ; for sin is ever that abominable thing
which God hates. But he permitted free agents to
commit sin ; that is, he did not interpose to hinder them
from acting as they pleased, because he knew that he
could make the existence of sin and misery, the occa-
sion of more illustriously displaying his attributes, par-
ticularly his justice and his mercy, than could have
been done in other circumstances. The reason then,
why sin was permitted to exist was, that God might
have an opportunity of manifesting his own glory to
all intelligent creatures more conspicuously \ which is
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PROVIDENCE OF 609. 75
the great end of all his works and dispensations. The
providence of God in regard to sin consists, first, in his
purpose to permit free agents, in the exercise of their
freedom, to commit sin ; secondly, in so directing and
governing sinful creatures, that their actions may be
made subservient to his own wise purposes ; and when
they would not have this tendency they are restrained,
according to that declaration in the Psalms, " Surely
the wrath of man shall praise thee : and the remainder
of wrath shalt thou restrain." The Holy Scriptures
constantly represent the providence of God as concerned
in the evil actions of men, not as causing or approving
them, but as permitting, governing, and directing them,
80 that they may promote his own glory. Thus, the
envy of Joseph's brethren, which led them to sell him
as a slave, was overruled to be the occasion of preser-
ving the whole family from death. The crucifixion
of our Lord was by the hands of wicked men, in the
free indulgence of their own malice, but it was never-
theless, "by the determinate counsel and foreknow-
ledge of God." And the same is true of all sinful
actions ; they are hateful to God, considered in their
own nature, and yet his providence is concerned in
their permission, and direction, so as to promote a good
end. The providence of God, therefore, in its relation
to the sins oi men, is most holy and wise, and does not
interfere in the least with man's free agency. " He
worketh all things according to the counsel of his own
will:" and his "counsel shall stand." " Shall there be
evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it ?" Amos
iii. 6.
The providence of God extends to all events, great
and small. Both reason- and revelation teach this doc-
trine. For if God governs the world at all, his provi-
dence must extend to small things as well as to great,
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76 PROVIDENCE OP GO©.
because of the concatenation of events, according to
which the great often depend for their existence on the
small. And if reason were silent, the Scriptures speak
out clearly on this point " The lot is cast into the lap,
but the whole disposal thereof is of the Lord." "Are
not two sparrows sold for a farthing, and one of them
shall not fall to the ground without your Father."
" For the very hairs of your head are all numbered."
The doctrine of a particular superintending provi-
dence, as it is a most reasonable, so is a most comfort-
able truth. If any thing could occur without being in-
cluded in the plan of the divine government, we never
could feel that we were safe. The sure ground of our
trust in God is, " that he works all things according to
the counsel of his own will." When the dark and
cloudy day of adversity comes, and billow after billow
rolls over us, and threatens to overwhelm us, our con-
solation is that our God rideth on the whirlwind and
directeth the storm. We may often think with Jacob,
" that all these things are against us ;" but when we
can view every event, however afflictive, as the ap-
pointment of our heavenly Father, we can say with
Eli, " It is the Lord ; let him do what seemeth him
good." It is a delightful thought to the true Christian,
that all events are under the government of Divine
Providence. The book of providence, the leaves of
which are successively unfolded day after day, should
be carefully studied, and its indications faithfully used
in directing us in the path of duty.
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man's primeval state. 7T
CHAPTER XIV.
man's primeval state.
As man was created a free, moral agent, it is not only
true that he was capable of being governed by a moral
law, but such a law resulted necessarily from his rela-
tion to his Creator. It was his duty as it was his de-
light,to exercise love and every holy affection toward
that Being who possesses every perfection. Although
man was perfect in holiness, being created in the image
of God, yet he was mutable, as being a creature ; for
immutability properly belongs to God only. All ac-
countable creatures are, therefore, from their very con-
dition, in a state of probation, that is, they are made
subject to a law which they are required to obey, but
which, in the exercise of their freedom, they may dis-
obey. It cannot be doubted that man was endowed
with full power to comply with all the divine requisi-
tions. The law demanded nothing but the faithful ex-
ercise of those powers and affections which belong to
human nature. The sum of all obedience was to love
the Lord his God with all his heart. This was not
only easy to an uncorrupted nature, but his highest
happiness was connected with it. Man's probation
would have continued without limit, unless God, in
great condescension and kindness, had been pleased to
enter into covenant with him.
The word "covenant" is to be understood in a much
more general and comprehensive sense, than the com-
mon import of the English term covenant. It is a
7*
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^H
f 8 man's pkimeval state.
solemn transaction in which God appoints and estab-
lishes certain conditions on which man might become
partaker of eternal life in heaven, secure from all dan-
ger of forfeiting his interest in the favour of God.
And as it pleased God that the human kind should
come into the world in connexion with the first man,
and should proceed from him as his children, it seemed
good to infinite wisdom to make him the federal head
and representative of all his posterity ; so that upon his
rendering perfect obedience to the commandments of
God, for a certain limited period, eternal life would be
secured to himself and to all his natural descendants ;
and on the other hand, if he transgressed the law given
to him, his sin should be considered as the sin of
the whole race ; or, in other words, should be so impu-
ted to them, as that they should be brought into exis-
tence in the same moral condition into which he should
fall, and be subject to the same penalties. And in
order that there might be a clear and decisive test of
the obedience or disobedience of man, under this cove-
nant of works, a particular tree was selected, called on
account of its use, "the tree of knowledge of good and
evil." Although the fruit of this tree was good for
food, and pleasant to the eyes, yet our first parents
were forbidden to eat of it, or even to touch it ; and
thus it became a precise test of obedience or disobe-
dience.
There was also another sacramental tree, called "the
tree of life," the fruit of which was to be used to pre-
vent all disease or tendency to death ; or, more pro-
bably, to be a sign and seal of eternal life to our first
parents, when their period of probation should be
ended, provided they continued in obedience.
Man, when created out of the dust of the earth, was
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man's primeval state. 79
inspired with a rational and immortal soul, and placed
in a pleasant garden, planted with every kind of trees,
bearing nutritious fruits ; the temperature of which
wag so mild that no covering for the human body was
needed. As he was without experience, all know-
ledge necessary for the preservation of life and the per-
formance of duty was given to him, and among these
gifts was that of speech, without which there could
have been no easy interchange of sentiments, nor any
considerable progress in knowledge. Man was also
made lord of the creation ; for God said to his newly
formed creature, " Have dominion over the fish of the
sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living
thing that moveth on the earth." And in this respect,
also, man was the image of his Creator. It was,
therefore^ left to Adam to give names to every beast
of the field and fowl of the air ; and for this purpose
they were made to pass before him, u and whatever
Adam called every living creature, that was the name
thereof"
It would seem from the tenor of the sacred history,
that God conversed freely with his creature man,
while he remained in Paradise, either by the ministry
of holy angels 5 or, more probably, by his Son, assu-
ming by anticipation the appearance of man. But, on
points where the Sacred Scriptures do not speak decis-
ively, it is our wisdom to be silent.
Here we may contemplate the interesting condition
of our first parents. They were holy and happy, and
had nothing to fear but sin ; yet, considering the natural
weakness of creatures, their situation was most critical,
and the everlasting interests of unnumbered millions
were suspended on the fallible will of our first parents.
And soon, alas ! all was lost !
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80 JfAN's PRIMEVAL STATE.
Upon a survey of the condition in which man was
placed, when created, there are two reflections which
force themselves on our minds.
1. The goodness of God to the first man and to the
race. Man was indeed fearfully and wonderfully made,
as to the structure and constitution of his body, and,
also, as to the intellectual endowments of his mind, be-
ing enriched with the noble faculties of reason, mem-
ory, and imagination. But, above all, the goodness of
. the Creator is manifest in stamping upon the soul of
man his own moral image, and in communicating to
him all that knowledge which was requisite for the
performance of duty and the enjoyment of happiness.
This goodness was also conspicuous in the external
provision made for the supply of all his wants, and the
gratification of all his innocent desires.
2. Comparing the condition of Adam in innocence
with that of man now, we may form some idea of the
greatness of our loss. A withering curse has fallen
upon the ground itself, man has lost his perfection of
life and health, and has forfeited his immortality. But
the heaviest part of the curse has lighted on his moral
powers. The image of God, which was his beauty
and dignity, has been effaced. Corruption and disorder
have ensued; and, in the place of happiness, misery, in
its multiform kinds, has seized upon him. Alas ! the
crown has fallen from his head, and the most fine gold
has become dim !
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XAW OP GOD. SI
CHAPTER XV.
LAW OP GOD.
Prom the relation which a rational creature sustains
to his Creator, arises an obligation to perfect obedi-
ence. The right of the Author of our being to what
he has made out of nothing, is the completest right
of which we can form a conception. And, as God
is infinitely excellent and glorious in his own nature,
it is reasonable that he should require the supreme
love of the rational creature. If we had any thing
better than our love and gratitude to give, in return
for what we have received from our Creator and
Preserver, we should be under obligation to render
the best which we possibly could; but since pure
love is the best offering of which we are capable,
God requires that. But when perfect obedience is
rendered, we do not repay our debt ; this never can
be done. When we have done all, we have only
performed our duty, and as it relates to God, are
"unprofitable servants." When man was created,
he was endowed with the necessary knowledge of
God, and his disposition was conformable to his law,
which was written on his heart. But when man
sinned, the image of God, as far as it consisted in
moral likeness, was lost ; but some knowledge of
duty, and feeling of moral obligation remained.
This, however, through ignorance and negligence,
was soon so obscured, that except in regard to a few
great enormities, men have generally lost sight of
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6f LAW OF GODL
the law of God as a rule of duty, reaching not only
to the outward actions, but to the thoughts and affec-
tions of the heart. It became very necessary, there-
fore, that there should be a new revelation of the
moral law, and such a specification of particular
duties, as was suited to the people of Israel, to whom
the revelation was made. This revelation was com-
municated by God himself from mount Horeb, m the
midst of thunderings and lightnings and darkness and
tempest, in a voice of tremendous majesty : and the
Decalogue which contained the specifications of this
moral law, was written by the finger of God on two
tables of stone, after having been uttered in a voiGe of
thunder from the midst of the fiery mountain.
The sum and substance of the moral law, as it re-
lates to the inner man, is comprehended in two com-
mandments, which are recognized by our Saviour as
still in force, and as containing summarily all moral
duty. The first of these is, "Hear, Israel, the Lord
our God is one Lord, and thou shalt love the Lord thy
God, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with
all thy might. And the second is like unto it, thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two
hang all the law and the prophets.?'
As to the dispositions and affections of heart, re-
quired by this law, they are the same to all persons^
and under all dispensations ; but as to the external acts
required, they vary according to the relations in which
men are placed. While, therefore, the principles of
moral obedience are simple, the acts which may be in-
cumbent on moral agents, may be infinitely diversified.
All, however, in every situation, are bound externally
to reverence and worship God, and to exercise justice
and mercy in their intercourse with their fellow men*
And there are also moral duties which have respect to
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Z.AW OF GOD; 83
ourselves. It is the duty of all, by lawful means, to
seek their own welfare — the improvement of their
minds, and the health and purity of their bodies $ and
to avoid every thing which has any tendency to injure
themselves. The exhortation, " Do thyself no harm/'
is of general application, and is a moral duty of great
importance.
It has been common to divide moral duties into three
classes ; such as we owe to God, to our neighbour,
and to ourselves. From what has been said, it is
evident, that there is some foundation, in the nature of
the case, for this threefold distinction. But it seems
scarcely correct to speak of owing duties to our fellow
creatures, or to ourselves, as though we had mora
sovereigns than one. There is, strictly, but one Sov-
ereign and one Judge, to whom we owe allegiance.
We are bound to love our neighbour, because God en-*
joins it ; and to promote our own welfare, for the same
reason. We are under one moral law which is bind-
ing, because it is made known to us to be the will of
God. It is obvious, that when all internal holiness ia
comprehended in love, this word must be taken in a
generic sense, to include all right affections toward
God, and toward our fellow creatures, such as rever*
ence, trust, gratitude, &c. ; and a like latitude should
be given to it, in relation to our fellow men.
The law of God is perfect. It has been justly called
a transcript of the moral perfections of God. It is the,
highest standard of moral dignity and excellence, of
which the creature is capable. It is also the measure,
of man's supreme happiness. We see then, not only,
that it is just in God to require perfect obedience to the
law, and that to require less would be a derogation
from his holiness ; but that his goodness is equally
manifest in the requisition of all the love and obedience
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84 tAW OP GOD.
of which the nature of man is susceptible ; for it is that
very state of mind, in which man's purest and subli-
mest happiness consists. And if we should, for a mo-
ment, suppose, that a less degree of love and obedience
should be required, either as to intensity or constancy,
where would we fix this degree ? It is evident, that in
proportion as man falls short of perfect love, or that de-
gree of love to his Creator, of which he is constitution-
ally capable, so far he sinks in moral dignity and ex-
cellence. And no man can fix any other measure of
love, which might not be, on the same principle,
lowered more and more, until nothing was left.
But the law of God is also just, for it requires no
more than what the creature, as he came from the
hands of his Creator, had full power to render. In the
case of all creatures, in innocence, the maxim is correct,
that duty and ability must be commensurate. Accor-
dingly, God does not require man to love or obey,
with the powers of an angel, but to love the Lord his
God with all his heart, mind, and strength. But
this maxim cannot with propriety be applied to the
case of those who by their own fault have lost the
ability of rendering perfect obedience. The law of
God cannot lower its demands in proportion to the in-
ability of man, brought on by transgression. That
blindness of mind, and that hardness of heart, and per-
versity of will, produced by sinning, are in themselves
sinful, and cannot, therefore, furnish any excuse. In
fact, these things constitute the root and core of our
depravity, and are the very things for which man shall
chiefly be condemned. The same is true of inveterate
habits of sin, and errors which are the fruit of sin.
These things cannot excuse, or there would be no
blame any where. No moral change, however, affects
the essence of the soul ; its faculties remain the same
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LAW OP GOD. 85
under all moral conditions. Sin destroys no constitu-
tional faculty, and regeneration produces no new fac-
ulty. Man, in all stages of his existence, continues to
be a free moral agent. If this were not the case, he
could not be the subject of a moral government.
Whatever the law requires, therefore, man has the
mental faculties which are sufficient for its performance,
if they were under the direction and government of
right dispositions of heart. These things being rightly
understood, the difficulty and perplexity often expe-
rienced in regard to man's being required to perform
what he has no power to perform, will be removed.
Besides those duties which arise out of our natural
relations, and which are called moral, God may pre-
scribe other actions, commanding the creature to per-
form acts, or abstain from acts, which in themselve are
indifferent, that is, destitute of a moral character ; and
these acts when commanded or forbidden, are as really
binding on the conscience as those dictated by reason,
for, whatever is known to be the will of God, is law,
and obligatory. The only difference between duties
of this class, and others, is, that the obligation rests
simply on the revealed will of God; and having
nothing of a holy or sinful nature considered in
themselves, they may be changed or abolished at the
pleasure of the Sovereign. But moral duties are, in the
same relations, and under the same circumstances, im-
mutable ; they cannot be dispensed with. This lays a
foundation for the distinction between moral and pos-
itive precepts. The first God must require, or cease
to be holy ; the last are binding when commanded,
but may be changed or abolished by the Lawgiver,
according to his wisdom and pleasure. It is not to be
understood, however, that ceremonial, or positive pre-
cepts have nothing of a moral nature. The difference
8
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86 LAW OF GOD.
between moral and positive duties is merely in the
external act ; but as to the motive and end, there is
no difference whatever. God's commands must be
obeyed from love to him, and with a view to his glory,
of whatever kind they be.
The decalogue, or Ten Commandments, should be
considered as a general specification of the duties aris-
ing out of the usual relations in which men stand ; and
not intended to express every particular species of duty,
or every conceivable kind of sin. Such a law, thus
carried out in minute detail, would be useless by its
bulk, and by the multiplicity of particulars would dis-
tract, rather than direct. The method chosen, is by
far more consonant with wisdom, where the principles
of moral duty are clearly laid down, and such a num-
ber of specifications given, as will enable the conscien-
tious reader or hearer to form a correct judgment re-
specting similar cases. ^
The following rules have been given as useful in the
explanation of the Decalogue.
1. The law is spiritual, and extends not only to the
external acts of the body, but to the thoughts, desires,
and purposes of the heart or mind. Paul, in Rom. vii.
14. testifies that the law is spiritual. " For we know
that the law is spiritual." Rom. vii. 7. " For I had
not known sin, unless the law had said, Thou shalt not
covet." The same thing may be conclusively argued
from the character of the Lawgiver, who is holy, and
whose prerogative it is, to search the heart. And in
the common judgment of mankind, the good or evil
of an act must be traced to the motive and the purpose
of the agent. Civil rulers can only take cognizance
of overt acts, but God jiidgeth the heart. Hence it
often happens, that that which is highly esteemed
among men, is an abomination in the sight of God ;
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LAW OF GOD. 87
because man looketh on the outward appearance, but
God looketh on the heart And this is strongly con-
firmed and illustrated in our Saviour's exposition of
the true nature of the law, where he represents malice
to possess the guilt of murder, and a wanton eye that
of adultery.
2. In affirmative precepts, negative must be consid-
ered as included ; and vice versa, negative in affirma*
tive.
In many passages of Scripture much more is meant,
than is explicitly expressed. But in the application of
this rule, caution and sound judgment are requisite,
lest we make the law a mere Lesbian rule, a nose of
wax, which can be bent into any shape — a vague and
indefinite thing, which every one may understand in
that sense which suits him. We must inquire accu-
rately and profoundly, into the mind of the Legislator as
elsewhere expressed, and pay strict attention to the
context, and to the occasion on which any precept was
spoken.
It is plain, however, that a precept enjoining some-
thing good, cannot be obeyed without avoiding the
contrary evil. It is also evident, that when any par-
ticular sin is forbidden, obedience cannot be rendered,
without cultivating and practising the contrary virtue.
Thus, when it is said, " Thou shalt not kill," it is ev-
ident that it is implied, that we should not only refrain
from injuring our neighbour, but should do what we
can to promote his welfare. And the command, not
to steal, includes an obligation to advance, as far as it
may be in our power, our neighbour's property and
outward estate. And every one sees, that the com-
mand to honour our parents, includes a prohibition to
dishonour or injure them.
3. In each of the commandments it is necessary to
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88 LAW OF GOD.
suppose, that, for brevity's sake, a part is put for the
whole ; a specimen which may be said to represent all
duties or sins of the same class : and the prohibition of
any sin, includes all things which would tend toward
it, and all inclinations leading to its commission. Thus,
when it is said, " Thou shalt not commit adultery," all
impure conduct is forbidden, as sodomy, incest, forni-
cation, and all lascivious actions; also all unchaste
thoughts, imaginations and desires which lead to the
commission of the crimes that belong to this class.
4. The cause must be considered as included in the
effect, the genus in the species, and the correlative in
the relative. Thus, in the prohibition of stealing, cov-
etousness, its cause, is forbidden. In the prohibition
of murder, cherished anger is included. Under the
head of theft, every species of fraud and injustice is in-
cluded. Under the sin of " taking the name of the Lord
in vain" is included all profaneness, and want of
due reverence for any thing relating to God, as
all trifling and jesting with his word ; and all ridi-
cule or contempt of the worship and ordinances of his
house.
So also, when the duty of children to parents is en-
joined, the correlative duties of parents to their child-
ren must be considered as required. And the mention
of one class of relative duties, must be considered as a
specimen of all relative duties. It is right, therefore,
under the fifth commandment, to comprehend the du-
ties of magistrates and subjects, of masters and ser-
vants, of pastors and their flocks, of husbands and
wives, and of every relation which lawfully exists
among men.
There are two rules laid down by theologians on
this subject, which though generally true, cannot be
considered as universally applicable.
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LAW OF GOD. 89
5. The one is, that the duties of the first table, o*
those which have God for their object, should have
preference above those of the second table, which have
our fellow men for their object. But, if a man be in
danger of perishing, and we can save his life, by
omitting prayer, or the worship of God, it is obviously
our duty to give preference to the duty of saving the
life of a fellow creature. Many other cases might be
supposed.
6. The second rule, commonly laid down, and which
is not of universal application, is, that moral duties
take the preference over positive ; mercy must be pre-
ferred to sacrifice. For this we have the authority of
the prophets and our Saviour himself: " I will have
mercy and not sacrifice."
Neither must this rule be considered as universally
applicable. Indeed, we cannot in any case, determine
our duty by it, without regard to the nature and cir-
cumstances of the duties which may come into compe-
tition ; for where there is no inconsistency in perform-
ing the duties, both kinds are obligatory, though some
may be much more important than others. The Phar-
isees who neglected the weightier matters of the law,
and were scrupulous in observing the payment of
tithed, even on the herbs of the garden, are not blamed
for tithing mint, anise, and cummin, but for neglecting
much more important duties; as appears by the
words of our Saviour, " These ought ye to have done,
and not leave the others undone."
But when moral and positive duties interfere, the
question is, whether the moral must in all cases have
the precedence. That mercy should be preferred to
sacrifice, is clearly revealed, but that in every case, a
divinely appointed ordinance must give way to every
species of moral duty, cannot properly be inferred from
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90 LAW OP GOD.
this text Suppose a believer to be so situated that he
has the opportunity of receiving Christian baptism, or
attending on the Lord's supper, and to be under the
necessity of going on a tedious voyage to sea, would it
be his duty to neglect either of these holy sacraments,
for the sake of performing some moral act not of the first
importance, which could not be performed, unless he
would omit these positive duties? For example, sup-
pose that just when about to attend on the Lord's
supper, he should be sent for, to visit a sick person at
a distance, would he be bound to neglect the only op-
portunity he might ever have, to receive either of the
sacraments of the Christian church ? I think not. In-
deed, to Christians, as commonly situated, it would not
be proper to absent themselves from the table of the
Lord, in order to pull an ox or sheep out of a pit, into
which it had fallen ; though this is a moral duty, when
not called to the performance of other duties, which
are more important.
Why the ceremonies of religion are sometimes spo-
ken of in a disparaging way, was on account of the
total defect of spirituality. As Isaiah says, " To what
purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me ?
saith the Lord, I am full of the burnt offerings of rams,
and the fat of fed beasts, and I delight not in the blood
of bullocks, or of rams, or of he-goats. When you
come to appear before me, who hath required this at
your hands to tread my courts ?" And again, * He that
killeth an ox, is as if he slew a man ; he that sacrifice*
a lamb, is as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth
an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that
burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol." The reason
why appointed rites are thus spoken of, as services
condemned and spurned by the Almighty, is not be-
cause the right performance of the ceremonial law was
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LAW OF GOD. 91
not acceptable, but because the people utterly neglected
the moral and spiritual part of worship, which is its
essence, and depended entirely on the performance of
external rites, while they indulged without restraint
their wicked inclinations; vainly trusting that these
observances would be a compensation for all moral
defects.
7. Another rule which has been given for the inter-
pretation of the moral law is, " That affirmative pre-
cepts are always obligatory, but do not require a con-
stant performance ; whereas negative precepts are not
only always obligatory, but must be constantly ob-
served." This rule, though true, is of very little use,
as the direction contained in it, is obvious to the reason
of every reflecting man. The duty of prayer is always
obligatory, but not a duty to be performed at all times;
but the negative precept, forbidding us to take the
name of the Lord in vain, binds us always, and is al-
ways to be observed.
The moral law will be better understood by consid-
ering the nature of the obedience which it demands ;
and this may be comprehended in the following par-
ticulars.
I. The law reaches to the whole of man ; to the soul
with all its faculties, and to the body with all its
members.
II. A fourfold perfection is required by the law.
1. It must be cordial or from the heart.
2. Universal, both as to its object and its parts.
3. In the degree of its intensity — with all the
heart, &c.
4. In its duration ; it must never cease.
5. The beginning, middle and end of obedience, is
love out of a pure heart, and faith unfeigned. But
under the term love is comprehended as was said be-
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92 FALL OF MAN.
fore, every virtuous feeling and holy purpose and emo-
tion. When the word is thus taken, " love is the ful-
filling of the law." The two commandments in
which all others are included are love to God and love
to our neighbour. As on these hang all the law and
the prophets, that is, all incumbent duties, in them
must be included all holy affections toward God, and
all right dispositions toward our fellow creatures,
according to our relation to them and our opportunity
of doing them good, " for love worketh no ill to his
neighbour."
CHAPTER XVI.
FALL OF MAN.
How long our first parents continued in innocence
we are not fnformed, and it would be in vain to con-
jecture ; but the common opinion has been that the
time was short.
Already an enemy of God existed ; a fallen spirit,
who had led a multitude of his fellow angels into
rebellion, who were cast out of their celestial habita-
tions, but had liberty, for a season, to roam about
the universe of God. Satan, the prince of the devils,
envying the happiness of man, formed the design of
seducing him from his allegiance, and bringing him
into the same degraded and wretched condition with
himself. He, therefore, watched his opportunity,
and knowing the woman to be the " weaker vessel,"
he resolved to make his first assault on her. She
seems to have been curiously gazing on the beautiful
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PALL OF MAN. 93
fruit of the forbidden tree, when the arch-fiend, mak-
ing use of the body of the serpent, which was the
wisest of the animal tribes, and had originally an
erect and pleasing form, " said unto the woman, Yea,
hath God said, ye shall not eat of every tree of the
garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We
may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden : but
of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the
garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither
shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said
unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die : for God
doth know, that in the day ye eat thereof, then your
eyes shall be opened ; and ye shall be as gods, know-
ing good and evil. And when the woman saw that
the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant
to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one
wise ; she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat ; and
gave alsa unto her husband with her, and he did
eat." Here the positive commandment of God was
violated, the covenant of life broken, and the curse
of death incurred, not only for himself, but for all his
posterity. Philosophically to explain how a perfectly
holy creature could sin, is not easy ; but as a prac-
tical matter the thing is not difficult. The mind of
man was incapable of thinking of many things at
once ; to his constitution belong many natural desires
and appetites. The objects suited to these might so
occupy the mind, for a season, as to exclude higher
and nobler ideas ; and, in a moment of inadvertency,
the lower propensities, which act with a blind force,
might prevail with persons, before innocent, to do an
act which God had forbidden ; especially, when by
an impudent falsehood the danger of the act was
positively denied, and when it was confidently alleged
that great good would be the result.
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94 FALL OF MAN.
Whether the man was influenced to eat, by the
same motives which prevailed with the woman, is a
matter of uncertainty. Many suppose that he was
led by love to his wife to determine to perish with
her, rather than be for ever separated from her. It
matters little what were his motives ; the fact was,
that he deliberately transgressed the law of God, and
thus involved a world in ruin.
The immediate consequences of the fatal trans-
gression were, a new set of feelings, of guilt, shame, and
fear, which caused our first parentsto cover themselves
with fig-leaves, and to hide themselves among the
thick trees of the garden ; and when questioned by
their Maker they attempted to excuse themselves,
and to charge their fault upon another. They were
now driven from the garden, and flaming cherubim
stationed at the entrance to prevent their return.
The ground was cursed for their sake, and doomed
thenceforth to bring forth thorns and briars ; so that
man would have to eat his bread by the sweat of
his brow. The sentence of death was also confirmed,
" Dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return."
It may be asked, how the threatening, " In the day
thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die," was exe-
cuted, since Adam continued to live upon earth for
more than nine hundred years ? " Let God be true,
but every man a liar." This threatening was exe-
cuted, or began ta be executed, that very day ; for,
from the moment of man's eating the forbidden fruit,he
became mortal ; death already began to work. Again,
in death, as threatened in the penalty, every kind of
evil is included. Temporal death, consisting of a
separation of soul and body, was not the principal
thing ; but spiritual death, which consists in a sepa-
ration from God, a loss of his favour, and image,
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PALL OF MAN. 95
and which perpetuated, is eternal death, commenced
on the very day on which man sinned. While man,
after the fall, retained all his physical powers of soul
and body, and continued still to be a moral and ac-
countable creature, he entirely lost that clothing of
moral excellence, which was the beauty and glory
of his nature. He was now dead in law, and dead
in trespasses and sins ; and from being a holy being,
became totally depraved ; that is, destitute of any
principle of true holiness ; but capable of unlimited
increase in wickedness.
That the posterity of Adam " sinned in him, and
fell with him in his first transgression," is evident
from the fact that they have all become mortal, and
are subjected to all the temporal evils which fell
upon him. They are all excluded from paradise,
and are forced to till the earth with the sweat of
their brow, which still groans under the curse, and
spontaneously brings forth noxious weeds instead of
useful grains and fruits. Woman is still, all over the
world, subject to the same pains in parturition, which
were threatened to Eve. But more than this, men
come into the world destitute of that holiness, or
original righteousness, in which Adam was created.
By nature all are children of wrath. All go astray
from their earliest years. " There is none that doeth
good, no not one. There is no fear of God before
their eyes, and the way of peace have they not
known." This state of corruption is not confined to
idolatrous Gentiles, but belongs also to the Jews,
who were in external covenant with God. "All
have sinned and come short of the glory of God."
And these streams of iniquity David traces up to the
polluted fountain, when he cries out, " Behold, I was
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96 PALI, OF MAN.
shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother con-
ceive me."
That the universality of death in the human race,
is owing to the transgression of Adam, is clearly
evinced from the express declarations of Holy Scrip-
ture. " As in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be
made alive." " As by one man sin entered into the
world, and death by sin ; so death hath passed on all
men, because that (or in whom) all have sinned."
" As by the disobedience of one, many were made
sinners." "By one man's offence, death reigned by
one." " Through the offence of one many are dead."
" By the offence of one, judgment came upon all men
to condemnation." And the facts, known by uni-
versal experience, are inexact accordance with these
declarations of the Bible. All men die. And that
this is on account of the imputation of Adam's sin,
is evident from this, that death reigns over " those
who have not sinned after the similitude of Adam's
transgression ;" that is, over infants who have not
been guilty of any actual violation of the law of
God.
Whether it was just in God to constitute Adam the
representative of all his posterity, and suspend their
salvation on his obedience, is not a question for us to
discuss. Whatever God does is just, and not only
just, but wise ; and though darkness may rest on this
transaction, this is owing to our ignorance and preju-
dice. We need not fear that the Judge of all the
earth will not be able to vindicate his own dispensa-
tions to the whole universe.
Some have thought to evade or lessen the apparent
hardship of the case, by denying the imputation of
Adam's sin to his posterity, and maintaining that
children were only punished for the depraved nature
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FALL OF MAN. 97
derived from Adam. But how came they to inherit
this depraved nature ? Is not this the principal part
of the curse ? And it goes a very little way to re-
lieve the mind which labours, to say that infants are
punished for latent depravity, instead of suffering
for the sin of Adam.
Instead of cavilling and complaining of the dispen-
sations of the Almighty, by which we have become
miserable sinners, let us not cease to bewail the deep
corruption of our nature ; and let us, instead of per-
plexing ourselves with fruitless inquiries about the
principles of the divine government, by which we
have been involved in this ruin, earnestly seek to
know what that gracious remedy is, which God has
provided for our recovery. The fact is certain, that
we are in a depraved and miserable state, and unless
we are redeemed from it, we must be forever in a
state of degradation and misery. When it is asserted,
that man is totally depraved, the meaning is not that
he is as wicked as he is capable of being ; or, that
all men are sinners in an equal degree ; but, that all
men are by nature destitute of any principle of true
holiness ; all love the creature supremely, and their
carnal hearts are at enmity with God, and not subject
unto his law, neither, indeed, can be. It is evident
from what has been said, that man is in a sinful,
miserable, and helpless condition.
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98 COVENANT OP GRACE.
CHAPTER XVII.
COVENANT OF GRACE ; OR, PLAN OF REDEMPTION.
In this treatise, the word " covenant" is used in a wide
sense, to correspond with the latitude which belongs to
the original terms, of which this is a translation.
Without attempting to give a very exact, or logical
definition of the phrase " covenant of grace," I would
say, that by it is meant the whole plan of redemption,
from its commencement to its consummation ; or, that
gracious method of bestowing salvation on elect sin-
ners, which is revealed in the holy Scriptures.
The fall of man, by which God's chief work on
earth was ruined, was not an unexpected event which
took the omniscient God by surprise ; nor could it dis-
concert that scheme which had been originally con-
ceived in the eternal mind. " Known unto God are
all his works from the beginning of the world," (Acts
xv. 18.) Although God is not the author of sin, and
can never look upon evil but with the strongest dis-
approbation ; yet, having created man a free, account-
able creature, and having endowed him with full
ability to obey the law under which he was placed,
he chose to leave him to the freedom of his own will,
without exerting any direct influence on him, either
to preserve him in obedience, or to cause him to fall.
And, although he knew that man would fall into sin
and ruin, yet he purposed to permit this, that is, not
to hinder it ; because he knew that he could make it
the occasion of a more illustrious display of his at-
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OR, PLAN OF REDEMPTION. 99
tributes, especially of his justice and mercy, than
could be made under other circumstances.
It is essential to just views of the covenant of grace,
to assume it as an undoubted truth, that the condem-
nation of mankind, under the covenant of works, was
just,_and that the Ruler of the universe was not
under any obligations to devise any plan of recovery
for fallen man, any mote than for fallen angels ; for if
it would not have been just to leave men under the
curse which they had incurred, then that covenant or
law, under which man was placed, was not a right-
eous constitution ; and if it would not have been just
to leave the human race in the ruin in which they
were involved, then their deliverance would not be a
matter of grace, but of justice. A difference of opinion
may exist among the orthodox, as to the kind and
degree of punishment to which the human race would
have been subjected, if the law had been executed
fully upon them, but there can be but one opinion re-
specting the justice of their punishment, by all who
entertain correct opinions respecting the character and
dispensations of the Governor of the universe. God
was not bound to provide a Redeemer ; this was a
matter of mere grace and favour.
The origin of the covenant of grace was the unpar-
alled, incomprehensible love of God to sinners of the
human race. The obstacles in the way of accomplish-
ing the salvation of those whose death was demanded
by law and justice, were apparently insuperable. It
may be presumed, that if the problem, how God could
be just and yet justify the ungodly, had been proposed
to a conclave of the brightest angels in heaven, they
could not have worked out a satisfactory answer : it
would have baffled their utmost intellectual efforts.
That God cannot cease to treat his creatures according
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100 COVENANT OP GRACE;
to the principles of eternal justice is most evident ; and
that justice required that the sinner should suffer, ac-
cording to his demerit, is equally evident. Where,
then, is there any foundation for hope in regard to
those who have once transgressed ? And not only the
justice, but the truth of God stood in the way of the
sinner's salvation. God had threatened the penalty
of death, interminable death ; and the Ruler of the *
universe must maintain the truth of his word, as it
respects his threatenings as well as his promises:
" God is not a man that he should lie ; nor the son of
man, that he should repent." (Num. xxix. 13.) But
that which could not be discovered by the wisdom of
creatures, was devised by the infinite wisdom of God.
In the counsels of the adorable Trinity the plan was
agreed upon. Between the Father and the Son, a
transaction took place, which may strictly be termed
a covenant, for, speaking after the manner of men,
there were mutual stipulations entered into between
the high contracting parties. The Father, as Legisla-
tor and Governor of the universe, appoints the Son
to the office of Mediator, and, on certain conditions,
gives to him a chosen people, elected from the com-
mon mass of fallen man, " according to his own good
purpose." The Son willingly accepts the arduous
office, and engages to comply with the proposed con-
ditions ; and the Holy Spirit consents to perform his
part in the execution and consummation of the glori-
ous plan. But, contriving and planning was not all
that was requisite ; the Mediator, in order to redeem
man, must obey and suffer in his place; and this
rendered it necessary, that he should descend to earth
and be born of a woman, and made under the law.
And this stoop of humiliation was not enough ; the
Son of God must suffer and die, in the room of the
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OR, FLAN OF REDEMPTION. 101
creature man. . And, in order that he might exhaust
the penalty due to man for sin, the Redeemer must
not only die, but his death must be of the most bitter
and accursed kind. To all this he consented, and
covenanted on behalf of his chosen, to meet all the
demands of law and justice against them.
If any should ask, what evidence we have of this
covenant of redemption, we answer, in the words of
the Mediator, " I appoint," or, as the original word
imports, " I give by covenant, unto you, a kingdom, as
the Father hath given by covenant unto me." Luke
xxii. 29. Again, " As thou hast given him power over
all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many
as thou hast given him." John xvii. 2. " I have
manifested thy name unto the men which thou
gavest me out of the world ; thine they were and
thou gavest them me." (ver. 6.) " I pray for them :
I pray not for the world, but for them which thou
gavest me." (ver. 9.) " Keep through thine own
name those whom thou hast given me." And the
solemn declaration in the eighty-ninth Psalm, " I
have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn
unto David my servant," has always, by the church,
been referred to the Messiah, to the spiritual David,
David's Lord, and David's Son.
But why was this salvation confined to a certain
favoured number, called the elect of God? This
doctrine of the sovereignty of divine grace, has, from
the beginning, been offensive to human reason. The
selection of men, and not of angels, as the object of
redemption, can be borne with ; but that, out of the
same mass, some should be taken, confessedly no
better than others by nature ; and that many should
be reprobated or left, no worse than those elected,
has ever been a stumbling-block to multitudes ; ajid
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102 COVENANT OF GRACE;
hence, however plainly the doctrine be revealed, they
tvill not receive it; and frequently manifest great
hostility to all who maintain and preach it, as did
the Jews when our Lord inculcated it by reference
to certain facts in the sacred history. But however
offensive this doctrine is to human reason, since it is
clearly revealed, and often expressed in the word of
God, we are not at liberty to relinquish or conceal it.
If God might justly have left all men to perish in
their sin, certainly he may justly leave a part in that
state of ruin into which they have fallen. As all
men are by nature children of wrath, the redemption
of a part cannot alter or affect the condition of the
rest. Because the pardoning power in the State re-
leases certain persons from the penalty of the law,
this does not render it unjust to punish others who
are under a sentence of condemnation.
The justice of God in this case is easily vindicated ;
but it is not so easy to reconcile this proceeding with
his benevolence. If God could as easily have saved
all as a part, why did he not manifest his goodness
in doing so ? To which it may be answered, that
we do not know the reasons of the divine conduct, in
this matter. He, as an absolute Sovereign, has a
right to do as seemeth good with his own. He con-
stantly refers election to his own good pleasure, to
the counsel of his own will. He has infinitely good
reasons ; but as he has not revealed them, we have
no right to inquire into them.
The manifestation of God's gracious purpose, in
the covenant of grace, began to be made immediately
after the fall ; first, in the sentence pronounced on
the serpent, in which it was declared that the seed of
the woman should bruise the head of the serpent,
that is, of " the old serpent, which is the devil ;" and
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OR, PLAN OF REDEMPTION. 103
next by the institution of bloody sacrifices, and ac-
cepting the offerings of this kind made in faith, as in
the case of Abel ; and by various communications to
the saints, until the time of Abraham, with whom
God entered into a special covenant, and to whom he
made many gracious promises, and granted peculiar
privileges to his descendants, and separated the
chosen race from all the world, and placed the seal
of his covenant in their flesh.
But when the seed of Jacob had grown to be a
great nation in Egypt, where they were held in
abject and cruel bondage, God appeared unto Moses
at mount Horeb, in the burning bush, and commis-
sioned him to deliver his people, and by a series of
wonderful miracles, to conduct them to Canaan*
which land four hundred years before he had pro-
mised to Abraham. While in the wilderness, at the
foot of mount Sinai, God appeared in dreadful ma-
jesty to all the people, and uttered his holy law in
ten commandments, in the midst of thunder and light-
ning, and the sound of a trumpet, while the whole
mountain burned with fire.
The moral law was binding on man by nature,
but it had become so much obliterated, that it became
necessary to republish it, that the people having the
true standard of duty before them, might be con-
vinced of their sins, and driven to seek refuge in the
atoning blood, so copiously shed on the Jewish altar.
Besides the moral law, which was not only pro-
claimed by the voice of God, but engraved by the
finger of God on two tables of stone, he gave many
ritual laws to be observed, instituted a priesthood,
and consecrated the family of Aaron to this service,
and directed Moses to erect a tabernacle for worship,
exactly according to a pattern showed him on the
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104 THE INCARNATION.
mount, where he remained in the presence of God
forty days, without eating or drinking, at two differ-
ent times. All these institutions, of a ceremonial
kind, were intended to be a shadow of good things
to come.
This dispensation, administered by sacrifices, by
types, and prophecies, continued, without essential
change, until it was superseded by the more glorious
dispensation of the gospel, introduced after the ad-
vent of the Messiah ; who being the Mediator of the
new covenant, and having answered all the types
and fulfilled all the prophecies, brought that dispen-
sation to an end. And the New Testament dispen-
sation, with clearer light, greater liberty, more of the
spirit of adoption, and a spiritual worship not con-
fined to any particular place, nor burdened with
external forms and rites, it is believed, will continue
until the second advent of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE INCARNATION.
Christ did not come into the world until about four
thousand years from the creation had elapsed. By
this delay it clearly appeared how deep was the
depravity of fallen man, as all nations, the Israelites
only excepted, departed from God, and lost the know-
ledge of his true character. And having apostatized
from the worship and service of their Creator, they
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THE INCARNATION. 105
universally, with the exception already mentioned,
addicted themselves to the most abominable idola-
tries, and to every species of degrading vice.
This apostasy was not owing to any defect of ex-
ternal light, for, as Paul teaches, " that which may
be known of God is manifest in them, for God hath
showed it unto them. For the invisible things of
him, from the creation of the world, are clearly seen,
being understood by the things that are made, even his
eternal power aud godhead, so that they are without
excuse. Because when they knew God they glorified
him not as God, neither were they thankful; but they
became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish
heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be
wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of
the incorruptible God into an image made like to
corruptible man, and to birds, and four footed beasts,
and creeping things." It was proper that the world
should have the opportunity of making trial of their
own wisdom before the device of infinite wisdom
should be manifested. Opportunity had also been
thus afforded to prepare the way for the advent of
the Mediator, by a system of types and prophecies,
which clearly designated his person and offices, and
thus furnished indubitable evidence of his being in-
deed the Christ of God. The time selected for the
advent of the Saviour was also suitable, because the
world was then full of inhabitants ; the human mind
had been highly cultivated, and the intellectual facul-
ties had attained their utmost vigour, and all the
civilized world were subject to one government ; and
the Latin and Greek languages were understood
through the whole extent of the Roman empire.
And although in the previous age civil discord and
desolating wars disturbed the empire, all was now
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106 THE INCARNATION.
reduced to peace under Augustus Caesar, so that a
favourable opportunity was afforded for propagating
the gospel among the nations. Besides, the time of
Messiah's advent had been fixed in the distinct
enunciations of prophecy. Shiloh was to come be-
fore the sceptre had entirely departed from Judah,
which was now far on the wane. He was to fill the
temple of Zerubbabel with his glory, which was soon
after this destroyed. And the specified weeks of
Daniel, when the Messiah should be cut off, were
drawing to a close. The "fulness of time" was
therefore come, when "God sent forth his Son, made
of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them
that were under the law."
It had been predicted by Isaiah, that " a virgin
should conceive and bring forth a Son, and that his
name should be Emmanuel, God with us." It was
also foretold by the same prophet, that "a child should
be born, who should be the Mighty God." There
was, therefore, a general expectation among the Jews,
that the advent of the Messiah was at hand ; and
this expectation was increased, when John the Bap-
tist began to preach in the wilderness, saying, " the
kingdom of heaven is at hand ;" thus fulfilling the
prophecy of Isaiah ; " The voice of him that crieth
in the wilderness,- Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God ;"
(Isaiah xl. 3,) and also the prediction of Malachi,
" Behold, I will send my Messenger, and he shall
prepare the way before me ;" and again, " Behold,
I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming
of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." (MaL
iii. 1 ; iv. 5.)
The place of the Messiah's birth had been expli-
citly named by the prophet Micah ; so that when the
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THE INCARNATIOW. 107
wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, and in-
quired where he was to be born who was King of
the Jews, Herod the king called together a conven-
tion of all the priests and scribes, to determine this
question, which they appear to have agreed upon
unanimously, for they immediately answered, "in
Bethlehem of Judea," and referred to the prophecy
of Micah. The providence of God in bringing about
the fulfilment of this prophecy was remarkable, for
Mary and her husband resided at Nazareth. But it
had been so ordered by an imperial edict, that every
person should resort to the town to which his family
properly belonged, to be registered, with a view to a
general taxation ; and thus the mother of our Lord
was brought to Bethlehem at the very time when
she was to be delivered of the child, conceived in her
womb by the power of the Holy Spirit. And as there
was not found room for them in the inn, the Son of
God was born in a stable, and laid in a manger.
This glorious event for our lost world, was not suf-
fered to take place without suitable notice : for how-
ever inattentive the great men of this world might
be to this humble, but miraculous birth, the angels
of God had their attention directed to it as the most
important event which had ever occurred in our
world. One of the heavenly host, probably Gabriel,
appeared to a company of shepherds in the vicinity,
who were watching their flocks by night, and said,
"Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which
shall be to all people, for unto you is born, this day,
in the city of David, a Saviour, who is Christ the
Lord." And as soon as he had delivered his mes-
sage, " a multitude of the heavenly host was with
the angel, praising God, and saying, Glory to God in
the highest, on earth peace, and good will to men."
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108 THE INCARNATION.
Until Christ was about thirty years of age, he lived
in retirement at Nazareth. When John, his forerun-*
ner, had been for some time engaged in his public
ministry preaching repentance, and baptizing the peo-
ple, Jesus came forth, and was baptized in the river
Jordan. Having voluntarily placed himself under
the law, it was proper that he should comply with
not only the moral precepts, but with all the ceremo-
nial institutions then in force. For although he could
not attend on these institutions as one who needed
forgiveness, or purification, or repentance, yet as he
came to take the sinner's place, he obeyed all the
laws then obligatory on the people ; for in infancy,
he was circumcised, when grown up, he attended the
Jewish worship at the temple, partook of the pass-
over, joined in the worship of the synagogue, and,
as John was commissioned of God to preach and bap-
tize, he submitted to his baptism. John at first for-
bade him, saying, " I have need to be baptized of
thee, and comest thou to me?" But Jesus answered,
and said, " Suffer it to be so now ;" and assigned as
a reason, " for thus it becometh us to fulfil all right-
eousness."
By the incarnation the divine and human natures
were mysteriously united. "The word was made
flesh, and dwelt among us." " God was manifest in
the flesh." " He that was in the form of God, and
thought it not robbery to be equal with God, made
himself of no reputation, but took on him the form
of a servant, and being found in fashion as a man, he
humbled himself, and became obedient unto death."
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ATONEMENT. 109
CHAPTER XIX.
THE EXPIATORY SUFFERINGS OF CHRIST; OR,
THE ATONEMENT.
An atonement is that which expiates sin ; which re-
conciles an offended party ; which makes satisfaction
for offences committed.
The reason why an atonement was necessary, was
the inflexible nature of divine justice. This attribute
leads the Ruler of the universe to render to every one
his due ; to treat every one according to his character.
The justice of God was manifested in giving to man
a righteous law, and annexing a penalty exactly pro-
portioned to the demerit of every transgression. Such
a penalty being annexed to the law, it is evident that
to execute it is a righteous thing ; and when this pen-
alty is incurred by transgression, the Judge of all the
earth, acting justly, must inflict it. He cannot deny
himself " He is not a man that he should lie, or the
son of man that he should repent." If the penalty
of the law might be set aside in one instance, it might
in all, and then government would be at an end.
Indeed, no reason can be assigned for a difference ;
if one sinner is exempted from punishment, the same
treatment should be extended to all ; for, in the ad-
ministration of law and justice, there should be uni-
formity ; though that principle does not apply to the
dispensation of grace.
How then can any sinner be saved? This is a
problem, which we are persuaded no finite intelli-
10
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110 ATONEMENT.
gence could have solved. But, what created wisdom
could not discover, the wisdom of the Triune God was
able to accomplish. The principle of an adequate
atonement by a qualified Surety, was the one adopted.
But who is sufficient to make the requisite satisfaction
to law and justice ? for, upon the principles already
stated, such a satisfaction was necessary. No mere
creature could be the substitute ; for, beside, that such
an one would owe obedience for himself to the full
extent of his powers, the actions and sufferings of a
mere creature could not possess that merit which
could be accepted, to answer the demands of the law
against millions. Neither could any person of the
Godhead perform the work of redemption. The
Deity can neither suffer nor obey. This mighty diffi-
culty can only be overcome by the constitution of a
person, in whom both natures shall be united ; that
is, by the second person in the glorious Trinity assum-
ing human nature into such intimate union with him-
self, that the actions and sufferings of this nature
shall be the actions and sufferings of the person
of the Son of God. That such a substitution was
admissible depended on the wisdom and will of God.
Among men, there would exist strong reasons against
permitting the innocent to die for the guilty; but
when we inquire what these reasons are, we find,
that not one of them applies to the redemption of
Christ. He has a complete right to dispose of him-
self, and the power to qualify himself for the arduous
work ; and by admitting the substitution of Christ in
the room of his chosen people, no injury is sustained
in any quarter ; for, though the Redeemer must en-
dure an inconceivable weight of sorrow for a season,
for this he will reap a glorious and endless reward.
And though the guilty escape, yet the plan provides
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ATONEMENT. Ill
for their complete reformation ; and the mercy of
God is illustriously displayed, and placed in a light
in which it never could have been, if this plan had
not been revealed.
And not only is mercy and condescension exhibited
in a bright and peculiar light, which gives to all the
intelligent creation new discoveries of the divine
character ; but justice, which would have appeared
glorious in the punishment of the guilty in exact
proportion to their demerit, yet shines forth with a far
brighter lustre in the sufferings of the only begotten
Son of God, than in the condign punishment of a
world of guilty sinners. Here, then, we see what
the nature of an atonement must be. It must rer
move those obstacles which stood in the way of the
sinner's salvation. These arose from the law and
justice of God, which demanded the life of the trans-
gressor. The Redeemer, therefore, must make a full
satisfaction to law and justice, or the sinner cannot
be saved. He must render a meritorious obedience
to the law which men had broken, and receive the
punishment of their sins in his own person. The
sufferings of Christ were, therefore, of a strictly vica-
rious nature. " He bare our sins in his own body,
on the tree." " He died, the just for the unjust, to
bring us to God." " He was wounded for our trans-
gressions, he was bruised for our iniquities." " Our
iniquities were laid upon him." No doubt he set us
a glorious example of perfect patience and fortitude,
in enduring so much pain and ignominy ; but example
was not the main end of these sufferings, which
would place them on the same level with those of
other martyrs. And, it is not disputed that the death
of Christ is calculated to produce a moral impression
on all intelligent minds, but even this was not the
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1 12 ATONEMENT.
direct end of Christ's sufferings, according to the
Scriptures; but he died as an expiatory victim, a
sacrifice to satisfy divine justice, as atonement for all
the sins of his chosen, as a ransom to redeem them
from their bondage ; yea, as a curse, to redeem them
that were under the curse. And this view of the
atonement is vital to the Christian system. It is
plainly the doctrine of the Old as well as the New
Testament ; and it ever has been the doctrine of every
sound part of the Christian church ; and it would be
©asy to show, that the objections to it are either frivo-
lous, or they are such as subvert the gospel of Christ,
and bring in another gospel, which exposes the abet-
tors of it to the anathema of Paul. Gal. i. 8.
All the sufferings of Christ should be considered
as expiatory, and as constituting the atonement which
he undertook to make for his people ; and, indeed, his
whole state of humiliation, should be considered as
belonging to his expiation. When he first felt the
pangs incident to infancy, when he went about from
day to day, "a man of sorrows, and acquainted with
grief," — when reproached, slandered, and reviled—
when hungry, thirsty, and weary — when filled with
grief at the hardness and perverseness of the people,
which drew tears from his eyes — when bathed in his
own blood in Gethsemane — when betrayed, bound,
dragged to trial — when falsely accused, and con-
demned — when mocked and reviled — when scourged
— when crowned with thorns — when fainting under
the cross — when nailed to the tree — when exposed to
the profane gaze of the multitude denuded of his
garments — when exhausted with pain and thirst —
and above all, when forsaken of God — and when he
breathed out his soul in death, he was enduring
the penalty of the law. And after he was taken from
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ATONEMENT. 113
the cross and laid in the sepulchre, though he suffered
no positive pain, yet he was still bearing the curse or
penalty of the law, which was death. And if it be
asked for whom did the Redeemer bear all this, he
has given the answer, " I lay down my life for the
sheep." He loved his church and gave himself for
it. But his atonement, considered in its intrinsic
value and .suitableness, is infinite, and sufficient if
applied, to save the whole world.
The sufferings of Christ, being those of a divine
person, have an infinite value ; it follows, therefore,
that although the punishment of the sinner was ever*
lasting, yet Christ could exhaust the penalty of the
law in a limited time ; that is, his sufferings and death,
though limited to a short period, were more than an
equivalent for the eternal sufferings of those for whom
he laid down his life. And in making this vica-
rious atonement, it was not at all necessary that the
Mediator should be the subject of remorse and de-
spair ; for these are not essential to the penalty of the
law, but merely incidental, arising from the circum-
stances and moral character of the sufferer. But it
was necessary that our substitute should suffer a
painful and accursed death, for this was specifically
threatened. Some have supposed that Christ endured
something of the torments of the damned after his
death, as the creed says, "he descended into hell;"
but the word hell here signifies no more than the
place of departed spirits, or the grave. Christ's suf-
ferings were finished on the cross ; and on that very
day his spirit entered into paradise. Luke xxiii. 43.
It cannot be reasonably doubted, but that all those
for whom Christ offered himself a sacrifice, will even-
tually be saved.
10*
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114 RESURRECTION AND
CHAPTER XX.
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
The blessed Redeemer, having been three days in
the grave, according to his own aft repeated predic-
tion ; that is, a part of three days, which, according
to the usual method of computing time, was reckoned
for three days, rose from the dead, and during forty
days, which he remained upon the earth, appeared a
number of times to his disciples, and gave them not
only ocular but palpable evidence of the reality of
his resurrection. And that there might remain no
doubt of his identity, he showed them his hands and
his feet, and even condescended to permit them to put
their fingers into the print of the nails, and to thrust
their hands into the opening made in his side by the
soldier's spear, after his death. And, on one occa-
sion, he appeared to above five hundred of his dis-
ciples convened in Galilee, on a mountain, where he
had promised before his crucifixion to meet them.
As the disciples had not understood his predictions
respecting his death and resurrection, they were very
slow to believe even their own senses. On this ac-
count, the risen Saviour took pains to remove every
shadow of doubt, and in several instances ate and
drank in their presence, just as before his death.
This time was also improved to give the Apostles all
needful instructions respecting their ministry, after he
should leave them.
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ASCENSION OF CHRIST. 115
At the expiration of the forty days, he led his dis-
ciples out to mount Olivet, where he blessed them,
and was parted from them, and carried up to heaven,
in the midst of thousands of angels, according to what
the Holy Ghost says, in the sixty-eighth Psalm, "The
chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands
of angels. The Lord is among them as in Sinai, in
the holy place. Thou hast ascended on high, thou
hast led captivity captive. Thou hast received gifts
for men, yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord
God might dwell among them;" which passage Paul
expressly applies to Christ. (Ephes. iv. 8, 9.)
Until the time of his ascension, as far as appears,
Christ's body remained the same as before his death ;
but as a body of flesh and blood, though free from
every stain, is not suited to the heavenly state, it is
reasonable to suppose, that Christ's body now under-
went such a sudden change, as we are informed will
pass on the bodies of the saints who shall be found
alive upon earth when Christ shall make his
second appearance. Before his ascension, he had
flesh and bones, which could be handled and felt ; but
now he assumed that glorious body in which he
appears in heaven, and in which every eye shall be-
hold him when he shall come in the clouds of
heaven, with all his holy angels, to judge the world.
That Christ appeared, after his resurrection, in the
same body which was nailed to the cross, and laid in
the sepulchre, is as evident from the sacred Scriptures,
as words can make it. Luke gives the following ex-
plicit testimony : " Jesus himself stood in the midst of
them and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But
they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that
they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why
are ye troubled ? and why do thoughts arise in your
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116 MEDIATORIAL OFFICES OF CHRIST.
hearts ? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I
myself. Handle me and see; for a spirit hath not
flesh and bones as ye see me have. And when he
had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his
feet." And though the fact is not mentioned, we
may certainly infer, that Christ's body underwent a
change before he entered heaven ; for we are assured
that " flesh and blood do not inherit the kingdom of
heaven ;" and as this is true in regard to believers, it
is equally so respecting Christ. Still it is the self
same body which is now in heaven at the right hand
of God, which suffered on the cross — but glorified.
(\AASW\AS\/>/WW«
CHAPTER XXI.
MEDIATORIAL OFFICES OF CHRIST.
The offices of Christ have long been divided into three ;
the prophetical, sacerdotal, and regal ; and this is not
an arbitrary distinction, but is founded in the wants of
men ; for he who undertakes to save sinners must be
qualified to deliver them from their ignorance, from
their guilt, and from their depravity; and he must
have power to protect them from all their enemies, and
raise them from death and the grave, and bring them
to the possession of eternal life. When Christ was
upon earth, most of his time, during his public ministry,
was spent in teaching. And in the exercise of this
office, " He taught with authority, and not as the
scribes." Even in the judgment of his enemies,
" never man spake like this man." But, when about
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MEDIATORIAL OFFICES OF CHRIST. 117
to leave the world, he promised to his disciples another
teacher, who should remain with them, and lead them
into all truth, and who should bring to their remem-
brance whatever he had said to them. Thus, he now
exercises the office of a prophet by his word and
Spirit, by which agency all the children of God are
taught of him ; and through faith in the holy Scrip-
tures, are made wise unto salvation. By the law they
obtain the knowledge of sin ; by the gospel they are
made acquainted with the only remedy ; and by the
influence of the Holy Spirit are enabled " to grow in
grace, knd in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. ,,
As Moses prophesied that Ihe Lord should raise up
a prophet like unto him ; that is, one who should be
the author of a new dispensation ; so, the same glo-
rious person is predicted in the Psalms, as a priest,
not after the order of Aaron, but after the order of
Melchizedek ; a priest who should have no predecessor
nor successor, but should possess in himself an ever-
lasting priesthood ; and who, by the sacrifice of him-
self, should be able to accomplish what the Levitical
priests never could. What they performed and ex-
hibited in shadows, he executed in substance. As
their sacrifices and oblations were to remove ceremo-
nial guilt and uncleanness, he, by the one offering of
himself, obtained eternal redemption for us. And as the
high priest, on the great day of atonement, after slay-
ing the sin-offering, both for himself and the people,
carried the blood into the most holy place, and sprink-
led it on the mercy seat ; so Christ, the High Priest of
our profession, having offered himself as a sacrifice on
the cross, has entered into the most holy place, not
made with hands, where he appears before God, to
present, as it were, the "blood which cleanseth from
all sin." "For Christ is not entered into the holy
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118 MEDIATORIAL OFFICES OF CHRIST.
places, made with hands, which are the figures of the
true ; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the pre-
sence of God for us." " For by one offering he hath
perfected for ever them that are sanctified," (Heb. ix.
24 ; x. 14.) Two things belong to the office of priest-
hood: first, oblation, or the offering a sacrifice; se-
condly, the sprinkling the blood, or the presentment
of the oblation before God. This, in Scripture, is
called intercession ; because, on the ground of having
complied with the stipulated conditions in the coven-
ant of redemption, the Mediator has a right to claim
the deliverance of those for whom he undertook.
This, therefore, is a very necessary part of the media-
torial work. It is the moving cause of all that is done
in the application of the purchased redemption. There*
fore it is written, " that he is able to save to the utter*
most all that come to God by him ; seeing he ever
liveth to make intercession for them." And here we
see the reason why the true believer never comes
again into condemnation, notwithstanding all his sins
and infirmities ; because he has an Advocate with the
Father, who is the propitiation for his sins. As fast
as he contracts guilt, his sins are blotted out; or,
rather, as he has the righteousness of Christ set down
to his account, he cannot come into condemnation.
" If God be for us, who can be against us ?" " It is
God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth ? Who
shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect?
Shall Christ, that died, or rather is risen again, who
is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh
intercession for us ?"
The Christian then, in all his trials, under all his
burdens, when tempted to despond or despair, should
have recourse to the cross, and should look for corn-
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MEDIATORIAL OFFICES OF CHRIST. 119
fort to the prevalent intercessions of his great High
Priest.
In the second Psalm it is written, " I will set my
king upon my holy hill of Zion." And Jesus Christ
was born a king. He was lineally descended from
David, to whose family the regal authority was pro-
mised for ever. When Pilate interrogated him, whether
he was a king, he did not deny it, but admitted and
asserted it, saying, " Thou sayest that I am a king.
For this end was I born, and for this cause came I
into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth."
After his resurrection, he declared to his disciples,
" all power in heaven, and in earth, is given unto me."
And we read, " that angels and principalities are sub-
ject to him." He is made " head over all things for
his church, which is his body." He is therefore called
" the King of kings and Lord of lords." " For he
must reign until he hath put all enemies under his
feet." In the exercise of his regal office, he governs
all providential events and revolutions, so as to pro-
mote the ultimate glory and triumph of his kingdom.
He holds under restraint all those enemies, who would
otherwise destroy his sheep. Over these he watches
with a shepherd's care. In the exercise of his regal
office he will judge the world in righteousness. " We
must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ."
" When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and
all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit on the
throne of his glory. Then shall the King say to those
on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, in-
herit the kingdom prepared for you from the founda-
tion of the world."
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120 JUSTIFICATION.
CHAPTER XXII.
JUSTIFICATION.
Correct ideas on the subject of a sinner's justifica-
tion are exceedingly important ; because this is a car-
dinal point in the Christian system. A mistake here
will be apt to extend its pernicious influence to every
other important doctrine. There is in human na-
ture a strong tendency to build on a false founda-
tion ; because man, when created, was placed under
a covenant of works ; and, by nature, he knows no
other way, than "do and live." Human reason
and the dictates of conscience, urge men to seek the
favour of God by obeying his will. If we were able
to render to the law such an obedience as would se-
cure justification, this would still be the right way,
and no other need be sought. " If there had been a
law," says Paul, " which could have given life, verily
righteousness (or justification) should have been by
the law." € * But what the law could not do, in that
it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, con*
demned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the
law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the
flesh, but after the spirit."
In most cases we should think it unnecessary and
inexpedient to contend about the meaning of a word,
when they who used it, explained the sense in which
they take it ; but, here it is exceedingly important, to
ascertain the scriptural meaning of the woid jwtijica-
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JUSTIFICATION. 121
Hon; for this is the point from which men's opinions
are most apt to diverge from the dictates of divine
revelation. And if we put a wrong sense on the word,
it will be sure to favour the dangerous doctrine of
human merit.
We would, therefore, lay it down as a truth, ca-
pable of the clearest proof, that justification, as used
in Scripture, does not mean any change wrought
within us, but a change of our relation or standing
under the law. As condemnation does not signify
the making a man wicked, but declaring him guilty ;
so justification, which is the very opposite of con-
demnation, does not mean the infusion of holiness or
justice into the hearts of men ; but, it is the sentence
of a judge, declaring that the person to whom it
appertains, is acquitted from every charge, and stands
right in the view of the law. It is then the act of
the Judge of the universe, by which it is declared,
that all condemnation is removed, and that the sinful
man is accepted as righteous in the eye of the law.
It is evident, that there can be no justification by any
law, unless the person accused can plead a perfect
righteousness ; for if he has sinned but once, that one
sin will prevent his justification as certainly as a
thousand. After Adam had committed the first sin,
it was impossible he should ever be justified by his
own works. And thus the word is used in regard to
human laws. If a man is arraigned before any just
tribunal, and it is proved that he has committed one
felonious act, the judge cannot justify him. And
hence it appears evident to reason, and the same
thing is repeatedly and emphatically taught in Scrip?
ture, " that by the deeds of the law no man can be
justified in the sight of God." And the reason sim-
ply is, that no man's obedience to the law is perfect
11
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122 JUSTIFICATION.
The idea entertained by some, that a sinner's imper-
fect obedience may be the ground of justification, is,
therefore, evidently absurd. And the opinion, that
the moral law is changed, and so relaxed as to be
level to the capacity of sinful creatures, is false and
unscriptural, and tends to introduce another gospel,
entirely subversive of the true system of salvation.
Man's sincere obedience, though imperfect, may be an
evidence that he is in a justified state, but never can
be the ground of the sentence of the Judge.
The question then returns, " How can any man be
just with God, since all have sinned and come short
of the glory of God ?" To which we answer, that
a man under the gospel is justified by faith, without
the deeds of the law ; that is, he is justified by the
perfect righteousness of Christ, received by faith. This
righteousness is imputed to the believing sinner ; that
is, God treats him as if he himself had wrought it
out.
God, the Judge, views the sinner, considered in his
own character, as he is, chargeable with innumerable
transgressions of his holy law ; but, when this ungodly
man truly believes and becomes united to Christ, he
imputes to him the perfect righteousness of his Surety,
who has, in his stead, obeyed the precept and suffered
the penalty of the law ; and thus rendered a complete
satisfaction to both law and justice. He can, therefore,
be just, while he justifies the ungodly ; for the sentence
is not pronounced on the ground of any righteousness
which the believing sinner has of his own, but entirely
on the ground of the perfect righteousness of the Me-
diator, which is accepted, as though it had been ren-
dered by himself. And in this transaction there is no
erroneous judgment ; for the Judge sees every thing
as it is, and pardons the sinner and accepts his person,
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JUSTIFICATION* 123
because he is viewed, " not having his own righteous-
ness, which is of the law, but the righteousness which
is of the faith of Christ ; even the righteousness which
is of God by faith."
Some are willing to admit that the forgiveness of sin
is on account of the atonement of Christ ; but they are
strongly opposed to the idea, that Christ's actual obe-
dience to the law should be the ground of the believ-
er's being adjudged to eternal life. But, if this be ex*
eluded, then the believer's own obedience must be the
ground on which he receives life. But, here again, its
imperfection renders it impossible that it should entitle
him to any reward, much less to the reward of eternal
life. The Scriptures, however, settle this dispute.
Paul says, " As by the disobedience of one, many were
made sinners ; so by the obedience of one shall many
be made righteous." Christ is, by the prophet, em-
phatically called, " The Lord our righteousness."
This is charged upon the Jews as their fatal mistake,
" that they went about to establish a righteousness of
their own, and did not submit unto the righteousness
of God." And it is then declared, that " Christ is the
end of the law for righteousness to every one that be*
lieveth."
As it is said, " that faith is imputed for righteous-
ness," many have adopted the opinion, that the act
of faith is graciously accepted, instead of a legal right-
eousness. But this would be inconsistent with the
scope of the apostle, whose main object is to show that
justification is entirely gratuitous, on account of Christ's
merit ; but faith is as much our act and our work, as
any thing else ; and, if a man is justified by his own
faith, then boasting is no more excluded, than when
he seeks justification by many good acts. Besides, the
Judge of all cannot declare, that the mere act of faith
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124 JUSTIFICATION.
answers all the demands of the law. Therefore, when
it is said, that faith is imputed for righteousness, it
must relate to the object of faith, even the perfect
righteousness of Christ. If a condemned criminal should
be pardoned by his prince, on account of the intercess-
ion of his own son, when the pardon is offered, the
man gladly accepts it. This act of acceptance may be
said to save him from death ; but, the true ground of
his deliverance is the intercession of the prince. In
this way, as a mere instrument, faith justifies the
sinner, and is imputed for righteousness, because it
lays hold of and appropriates the righteousness of God,
by which the law of God has been completely
satisfied.
Others, considering faith as the root of every Christ-
ian virtue, and the spring of all good works, adopt the
opinion, that to be justified by faith is the same as to
be justified by our whole evangelical obedience, and
that the works excluded by Paul, are either ceremo-
nial observances, or "dead works/' not proceeding
from faith. To this theory the same objection lies, as
has been already urged; namely, that this righteous-
ness is imperfect, and no imperfect righteousness can
justify. And another objection, which is fatal to this
theory, is, that the sinner is justified completely when
he first believes; " There is no condemnation to them
that are in Christ Jesus;" "being justified freely by
his grace;" " being justified by faith." But, if evan-
gelical obedience is the ground of justification, no man
can be justified in this life, for he will be engaged in
working out this righteousness all his life. This con-
sequence being inevitable, a learned commentator
maintains, that there is no justification till the day of
judgment.
There is nothing more difficult than to bring men
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JUSTIFICATION. 125
off from dependence, in some form, on their own right-
eousness. Therefore, the advocates of human merit,
and justification by works, hav« seized with avidity
upon the words of the apostle James, who declares
that "a man is justified by works and not by faith
alone." If he used the words "faith" and "justifica-
tion" in the same sense as that in which they are used
by Paul, there would be a flat contradiction between
these two apostles. Thus Luther viewed the matter,
at first, and, therefore, for a while, rejected the epistle
of James. But, when the scope of this apostle is con-
sidered, and the whole discourse impartially weighed,
it will be found, that in doctrine he and Paul did not
disagree, though they employ the terms mentioned in
a somewhat different sense. James was engaged in
refuting the opinion of certain professors, who held
that all that was necessary to justification was a spec-
ulative assent to the truth. He shows that such a
faith, being dead, could not justify. His doctrine is,
that a living, operative faith, is necessary ; and, that
our faith must be shown by our works ; and this is the
same thing which Paul taught. Moreover, he uses
the word justification, in the passage referred to, not
for a sinner's acceptance with God, at first, but by it he
means that which showed his sincerity ; those good
works which the saints perform justify them in the
eyes of men ; and this is evident from the example of
Abraham, for he asks, Was not Abraham justified by
works, when he offered up his son ? But the pious act
of offering up Isaac, took place many years after God
had accepted Abraham, and entered into covenant
with him. This act, therefore, could not have been
the ground of his justification in the sight of God ; but
it justified the sincerity of his profession, and showed
that he was indeed a true believer. These apostles,
11*
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186 JUSTIFICATION.
therefore, do not differ, but essentially agree in their
doctrine.
By an impartial consideration of all the schemes of
justification which have been devised, there is none
which gives due honour to the divine law, except
that which represents the righteousness of Christ im-
puted and received by faith, as the only ground of a
sinner's pardon and acceptance. And, if God could
have been just, and could have justified the sinner on
any other ground, the whole Mediatorial work of
Christ might have been dispensed with.
A common objection to this doctrine of gratuitous
justification is, that it tends to negligence and licen-
tiousness. This objection is as old as the time of Paul,
for he states it distinctly and answers it effectually.
" Do we make void the law through faith ? nay we
establish the law." " Shall we continue in sin that
grace may abound ? God forbid ! how shall we that
are dead to sin live any longer therein ?" The faith
which justifies, works by love and purifies the heart,
therefore the justified person cannot be negligent of
good works. And, if an appeal be made to facts,
it will be found that those who maintain this doctrine,
are not deficient in obedience, on a comparison with
those who hold a different doctrine.
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REGENERATION AND CONVERSION* 127
i CHAPTER XXIII.
REGENERATION AND CONVERSION.
The necessity of a change of moral character in man,
arises from the fact, that by nature all men are "dead
in trespasses and sins," and, therefore, if any of the
human race are ever saved, they must be regener-
ated ; for, even if a mam could be justified and yet
remain under the power of sin, he could not be
happy, because sin contains in itself the seeds of
misery, and such an one would certainly be inca-
pable of participating in the joys of heaven, which
require a holy nature to perceive or relish them.
Therefore, our Lord said to Nicodemus, " except a
man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of
God."
It is not necessary to be very exact in distinguish-
ing between regeneration and conversion, especially
as the Scriptures appear to speak of both together.
But, it may not be amiss to remark, that regenera-
tion, which is the communication of spiritual life, is
the act of God ; conversion, which is a turning from
sin to God, is our act, in consequence of the divine
influence exerted on our minds.
That God is the author of regeneration is evident
from Scripture, and from the nature of the case.
The same power that caused light to shine out of
darkness must shine into our hearts, to give us the
light of the knowledge of God. " Who are born,
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, noi
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128 KEGENERATION AND CONVERSION.
of the will of man, but of God." And, as this
work in the economy of salvation belongs to the
Holy Spirit, it is said, "Except a man be born
of water and the Spirit, he cannot see the king-
dom of God." That man cannot regenerate him-
self is too evident to need a remark. Life, in all
cases, is the gift of God. If spiritual life be extinct
in man, none but the power of God is adequate to
rekindle it. It would be as reasonable to suppose
that the human body, when deprived of animal life,
could restore itself to activity and animation, as that
a soul dead in sin should be able to perform the acts
which appertain to spiritual life.
It is said that we are " born again by the word of
God, which liveth and abideth for ever," and, that
God, of his own will, " begets us again by the word
of truth." But the word, in this case, must be con-
sidered as an instrument in the hands of the Spirit ;
it can have no saving efficacy without a divine energy
accompanying it. But how is the word a means of
regeneration ? To this two answers may be given,
accordingly as we use the word regeneration in a
stricter or wider sense. As the operation of God in
the communication of life to the soul is an instanta-
neous act, there is no place for any instrumentality
in producing the effect ; and, as the word only pro-
duces a saving effect, when the heart is prepared by
grace, the word is the means of regeneration only as
God has connected the influences of the Spirit with
the preaching and reading of the word. But, if we
take the new birth in a wider sense, to include not
merely the operation of God on the soul, but also the
effects produced in the changed views and feelings
of the soul, then we can easily understand how the
word is a means of giving knowledge to the mind,
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REGENERATION AND CONVERSION. 129
and of exciting those exercises and affections, in
which the spiritual life essentially consists. The
word, alone, can never generate a true faith ; but,
when the Spirit of God has operated on the blind
mind, the glorious truths of the gospel begin to ap-
pear in their true light, and become the object of a
saving faith. So, also, when the beauty of holiness
is perceived by means of the word, love is excited ;
and, when sin is viewed as exhibited in the word of
God, as odious and abominable, true repentance is
enkindled ; and thus of every other exercise of the
renewed nature. It may, therefore, be truly said,
that in every act of the spiritual life, the word of
truth is concerned ; it presents the proper object and
supplies the persuasive motive. Indeed, if the mind
were in a state free from blindness and corruption,
the mere objective presentation of the truth, without
any supernatural influences, would bring into exer*
cise all holy acts and affections.
In regeneration there is no *new faculty created*
understanding by the word faculty some constituent
power of the soul ; for, as by the fall man did not
cease to be a moral agent, but retained all the facul-
ties which belonged to him as man ; so in regenera-
tion, no new faculty is produced. The loss was not
of any physical power, but of the moral excellence
in which man was created. The same soul may be
in ignorance, or filled with knowledge ; actuated by
holy desires and affections, or the contrary. The
moral character is a kind of clothing of the soul,
which may be essentially changed, while the essence
of the soul, and its natural faculties, remain un-
changed.
Although Almighty power is exerted in the regen-
eration of a sinner, yet man is only conscious of the
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130 REGENERATION AND CONVERSION*
effects, as they appear in the exercises of the renewed
mind. And as the end accomplished in this change
is the partial restoration of the lost image of God, or
"knowledge" and "true holiness," the evidences of
regeneration are the same as the evidences of a holy
nature. And as spiritual or holy exercises are spe-
cifically different from all others, there would be no
difficulty in discerning the characteristics of piety in
ourselves, were it not for the feebleness of these ex-
ercises, and the sad mixture of feelings of an opposite
nature. The best way, therefore, to obtain a com-
fortable assurance that we are regenerated, is, to
press on with assiduity and alacrity in the divine life.
That which is obscure in itself will not become clear
by poring over it ever so long ; but, if we emerge
from our darkness, and come forth into the light, we
shall be able to discern clearly, what was before in-
volved in obscurity. If we would know whether
our faith and love and hope are genuine, we must
seek to bring these graces into lively exercise, and
then we cannot avoid perceiving their true character.
But as faith is really the apprehension and reception
of offered mercy, it is by directly believing in Christ,
or actually rolling our burdens on him, that we expe-
rience peace and confidence. Where a good work is
begun, it will be carried on. None but they who
persevere to the end shall be saved. In concluding
this article, we may adopt the language of the be-
loved disciple, "Behold what manner of love the
Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be
called the sons of God ! Beloved, now are we the
sons of God ; and it doth not yet appear what we
shall be ; but we know that when he shall appear,
we shall be like him 5 for we shall see him as he is."
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REPENTANCE AND FAITH* 131
CHAPTER XXIV.
REPENTANCE TOWARD GOD AND FAITH IN OUR
LORD JESUS CHRIST.
Paul gives "repentance toward God and faith in our
Lord Jesus Christ," as a summary of his preaching,
during his two years' ministry at Ephesus ; and, as
comprehending the whole counsel of God, and as in-
cluding whatever was profitable to the people.
Repentance literally signifies a change of mind for
the better ; but, in our Shorter Catechism, it is de-
fined to be, "A saving grace, whereby a sinner out
of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the
mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred
of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose
of and endeavour after new obedience." And in the
same place, faith is defined to be, " A saving grace,
whereby we receive and rest upon him (Jesus Christ)
for salvation as he is freely offered in the gospel."
Whatever difference of opinion there may be as to
the precise meaning of these scriptural terms, all
sound Christians will admit, that for popular and
practical use, no language could be selected which
would more perspicuously and properly convey to
the reader a true notion of these fundamental graces.
And, as to the precedence of one before the other, it
is a question as impertinent, as whether a whole pre-
cedes one of its parts, or is preceded by it. No man
can give a sound definition of evangelical repentance
which will not include faith. But, if the word re-
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132 BEPENTANCE AND FAITH.
pentance be used in a more restricted sense, for
godly sorrow for sin and hatred of it, it must be
preceded by a true faith, for seeing in a rational
mind goes before feeling. There must be a percep-
tion of the holiness of the divine law, before the tur-
pitude of sin can be so seen as to occasion hatred of
it, and grief on account of it But, if by faith be meant
that cordial reception of Christ, which is mentioned
in the words cited from the Catechism, then, certainly,
there must be some true sense of sin, before we can
appreciate Christ as a Saviour from sin. But, it is
altogether wrong to perplex the minds of serious
Christians with useless questions of this sort. Let
the schoolmen discuss such matters to their heart's
content, but let the humble Christian rest in the plain
and obvious meaning of the words of Scripture. The
effect of divine truth on the heart is produced by
general views, and not by nice and metaphysical dis-
tinctions.
Both faith and repentance must be proved to be
genuine by their fruits. "Faith works by love and
purifies the heart." " Faith overcomes the world."
James says, " show me thy faith without thy works,
and I will show thee my faith by my works." Re-
pentance is itself a turning from sin unto God. It is
the commencement of a reformation from all sin.
John the Baptist, when he inculcated repentance, at
the same time called upon the people " to bring forth
fruits meet for repentance." Repentance is no atone-
ment for sin; but it is indissolubly connected with
the pardon of sin. Therefore it was said, " Repent
and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.'/
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SANCTIFICATION J OR, GROWTH IN GRACE. 133
CHAPTER XXV.
SANCTIFICATION; OR GROWTH IN GRACE,
In regeneration, spiritual life is communicated ; but
this incipient principle is in its infancy, when first im-
planted. The vigour of spiritual life seems to be
analogous to natural life, very different in different
subjects. But in all it is imperfect, and needs to be
assiduously cherished and nurtured, that it may daily
gain strength, and gradually rise to maturity. There
are various means of divine appointment conducive
to this end, in the use of which growth is as certain
as in the body when supplied with nutriment. In
the former as well as in the latter, there may be sea-
sons of decay, arising from various untoward causes;
but, it may be assumed as a fact, that where the
principle of piety is really radicated in the soul, there
will be growth; the steady tendency will be to a
state of maturity. And, although perfection is never
attained in this life, yet there is in all true Christians
a sincere desire after it, and there may be a constant
approximation toward it,as long as they live. And
such a state of piety may be attained, as, compara-
tively, may be termed a state of perfection, and is so
termed in Scripture. From what has been said, it
will be apparent, that sanctification does not differ
specifically from regeneration; the one is the com-
mencement, the other the continuance and increase
of the same principle.
12
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134 SANOTIFICATION ; OR,
Two things are commonly intended by the word
sanctification. The first is, the mortification of sin ;
the last, the increase of the vigour and constancy of
the exercises of piety. But, although these may be
distinguished, yet there is no need to treat of them
separately, because the advancement of the one can-
not but be accompanied with progress in the other.
Like the two scales of a balance, when one is de-
pressed the other rises. Just so in the divine life in
the soul, if pride is humbled, humility is of necessity
increased ; if the undue love of the creature is morti-
fied, the love of God will be strengthened ; and so of
every other grace. Indeed, when we examine the
subject accurately, we shall find, that all real mortifi-
cation of sin is by the exercise of faith, and those
holy affections which flow from it. By legal striv-
ing, however earnest, or by ascetic discipline, how-
ever rigid, very little headway is made against the
stream of inherent corruption. It is right, indeed, to
keep the body under, lest its blind appetites and im-
pulses should hinder the exercises of religion ; and
occasional fasting, when free from superstition, does
greatly aid the spiritual progress of the true Chris-
tian ; and this is especially the fact, when he is in
conflict with some fleshly lust, or easily besetting sin.
A pampered body will ever be an enemy to growth
in grace.
It must not be forgotten, that we are as dependent
on the Holy Spirit for every holy act and exercise, as
for the ability to put forth the first act of faith, when
regenerated. We have no strength in ourselves, in
consequence of our justification and conversion. Christ
has said, " Without me ye can do nothing." He is
the vine, and believers are the branches. " As the
branch cannot bear fruit except it abide in the vine,
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GROWTH IN OB ACE. 135
neither can ye except ye abide in me." Yet this
does not take away or diminish our motives for exer-
tion ; so far from it, that it affords the only encour-
agement which we have for diligence in the use of
means. For though the power is of God, that power
is exerted through the means of divine appointment.
Therefore, in Scripture, divine aid and human agency
are constantly united. When Christians are exhorted
" to work out their salvation," the reason assigned is,
" for it is God that worketh in you both to will and
to do, of his own good pleasure."
Where two opposite principles exist in the same
person, there must be a conflict. When the whole
current of the affections runs toward the world, there
being no opposing principle, no conflict is experi-
enced, except that which arises from the remon-
strances of conscience ; or from the discordant crav-
ing of conflicting desires of a sinful kind. But, in
the true believer, " the flesh lusteth against the spirit,
and the spirit against the flesh; so that he cannot
do the things that he would." And often the spirit-
ual man is made to groan in agony, and to cry out,
u 0, wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me
from the body of this death ?" Although, in this
warfare, the principle of grace is generally victorious,
for it is written, " sin shall not have dominion over
you ;" yet, sometimes, by the power of temptation,
and negligence in watchfulness, the man of God is
cast down and degraded, and unless raised up by the
hand of the Captain of his salvation, he would rise
no more. But, as the work of grace was begun
without any merit or co-operation of the believer,
the same love which at first effectually called him
away from his sins and from the world, still pursues
him, and will not suffer the enemy ultimately to tri-
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136 SANCTIFIC ATION ; OR,
umph over him. Satan shall never have the oppor-
tunity of boasting that he has accomplished the ruin
of one whom God purposed to save, and to save
whom Christ died, and who has been effectually
called by the Holy Spirit. He may fall, but he shall
rise again, for God hath said, "My grace is sufficient
for thee," and, " I will never leave thee nor forsake
thee." And not unfrequently, the very falls of the
children of God are overruled for their more rapid
progress in future. Nothing more tends to humble
the soul, and destroy self-confidence, than being over-
taken by such faults.
The means of sanctification may be comprehended
under two general heads, the word of God and prayer.
The first is the food which is provided for the nour-
ishment of the soul, and by which it lives. Christ
himself is indeed the bread of life — the manna that
came down from heaven ; but it is only in the word,
that we can find Christ : there he is revealed — there
his dignity and glory are manifested — there we be-
hold his holy life, his miracles, his sufferings, his death,
his resurrection, ascension, and intercession. The
whole object of faith, and love, and hope, is found in
the word of God. Therefore, it is by the assiduous
study of the word, and meditation on its truths, that
we are to expect an increase of faith, and a real
growth in grace.
The other principal means of growth is prayer ;
especially, prayer for the influences of the Holy
Spirit. Without the Spirit, as we have seen, there
can be no progress ; but this sum of blessings is gra-
ciously promised in answer to prayer. Ajid these
two means are harmonious; for the word is the
" sword of the Spirit." The Spirit operates only by
the word. Therefore, though we read that sanctifi-
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CtllOWTH IN GRACE. 1 37
cation is of the Spirit, we also read that effectual
prayer of Jesus Christ, " Sanctify them through thy
truth 5 thy word is truth."
Although all the means of sanctification may be
comprehended under the word of God and prayer,
yet there are many subordinate means, which have a
powerful efficacy in giving application and force to
these. In this light may be considered the ministry,
the reading of good books, attendance on the sacra-
ments, and fasting. There is one means of grace of
this class which we are not required to resort to, but
which is often employed by our heavenly Father
with great effect, in promoting the sanctification of
bis children; I mean the chastisements of his rod.
The benefit of affliction is often celebrated in Scrip-
ture ; and almost every child of God can, after a few
years' experience, adopt the language of the royal
Psalmist, and say, " It was good for me that I was
afflicted." And Paul testifies, that though "no
chastisement for the present is joyous but grievous,
yet afterwards it worketh the peaceable fruits of
righteousness in them who are exercised thereby."
Afflictions are often used as the means of recovering
the children of God from a state of backsliding ; as
says David, " Before I was afflicted, I went astray,
but now I keep thy testimonies."
Though Christians do not arrive at sinless perfec-
tion in this life, yet it is a state to which every hum-
ble child of God shall attain at death. Christ will
present his whole body before his Father's throne,
"without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing." "We
shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."
12 *
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138 good works: oh,
CHAPTER XXVI.
GOOD WORKS J OR, CHRISTIAN DUTIES.
« Truth is in order to goodness ;" and the great
touchstone of truth, is, its tendency to promote ho-
liness, according to the Saviour's rule, "By their
fruits shall ye know them."
Good works are such as the law of God requires to
be performed by all persons, according to the rela-
tions in which they stand, and the positive precepts
which he has enjoined, and which are in force at the
time. They have been commonly divided into three
classes, the duties which we owe to God, to our
neighbour, and to ourselves ; but in strict propriety
of speech, all our duties, whoever may be the object,
are due to God. He is our Lawgiver, and we are
under the moral government of no other.
Though Christ fulfilled the preceptive part of the
law in the room of God's chosen people, yet he did
not thereby free them from the obligation of obedi-
ence to the moral law. Such a release from moral
obligation is inconceivable ; for it is impossible that a
creature should not be under obligations to love and
honour his Creator ; but if such exemption from law
were possible, it would be no blessing but a curse ;
for our happiness consists in conformity to the law of
God. "In keeping thy commandments, there is a
great reward."
As the obligation to obedience cannot be removed,
so neither can the requisitions of the law, as some
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CHRISTIAN DUTIES. 139
suppose, be lowered. Man must ever be as much
bound to love God with the whole heart, as to love
him at all. If man had fulfilled the condition of the
first covenant, which required perfect obedience
during his probation, he would not have been free
from moral obligation to obedience, in consequence
of his justification. Angels, who are supposed to be
now confirmed in happiness, are as much under ob-
ligation to love God as ever. Indeed, as has been
hinted, holiness and happiness are inseparable. The
Holy Scriptures abound in exhortations to Christians
to be diligent, zealous, and persevering in the perform-
ance of the respective duties of their stations ; in the
performance of which, divine aid may be asked, and
confidently expected.
Some duties are incumbent on all classes of people ;
such as the worship of God, doing good to men, and
abstaining from every thing which would have a ten-
dency to dishonour Christ, to injure our neighbour,
or hinder our own usefulness and improvement.
Two things especially are incumbent on all, in relation
to their fellow-creatures residing on the earth with
them. The first is, the communication of saving
knowledge to such as are so unfortunate as to be des-
titute of this precious treasure. This is a duty of
universal obligation, though the means proper to be
used by different persons will vary, according to the
variety of the circumstances in which they are placed.
It is the duty of all Christians to " let their conversa-
tion be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that it
may minister grace to the hearers." It is also made
their duty to exhort and admonish one another, and
that daily, lest any be hardened through the deceitful-
ness of sin. All Christians are bound also to teach
by example as well as by precept, by exhibiting to
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140 good works; or,
the view of all who see them a holy life, " Let,"
says Paul, " your conversation be such as becometh
the gospel." And our blessed Lord in his sermon on
the mount, commands : " Let your light so shine, that
others seeing your good works, may glorify your
Father who is in heaven/ y It is evident from the
very nature of this duty, which arises from our obli-
gation to love our neighbour as ourselves, that all
Christians are bound to send the gospel to those who
are destitute of this necessary means of salvation ; for,
" how can they hear without a preacher, and how
can they preach except they be sent ?" All, there-
fore, according to their ability, should contribute to-
ward this object, by supporting missionaries, aiding
in the printing and circulation of Bibles and evangel-
ical tracts, and maintaining institutions of learning for
the training of ministers. But this duty of diffusing
abroad the precious seed of divine truth, devolves es-
pecially on those who have been called to the holy
ministry, who have been ordained for this very pur-
pose, to publish to every creature the gospel of the
grace of God. When a dispensation of the gospel is
committed to any one, he will incur a fearful load of
guilt if he turn aside to any secular employment.
This may be learned from many things left on record
by the apostle Paul. He calls God to witness that he
was free from the blood of all men at Ephesus, be-
cause he had not ceased to declare unto them repent-
ance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ;
evidently intimating, that if he had not been thus
faithful and diligent, he would have incurred the
guilt of their destruction ; which is exactly in accord-
ance with what is said respecting the unfaithful
watchman in Ezekiel.* The duty of preaching, to
*xxxiii. 1 — 9.
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CHRISTIAN DUTIES. 141
those who are called and have undertaken the office,
is not optional, which is evident from what Paul says,
in another place, " Wo is me, if I preach not the
gospel."
Others, who have the instruction of youth commit-
ted to them, are under peculiar obligations to instil
into their opening minds the doctrines of God's holy
word. Parents, guardians of orphans, masters of
servants or apprentices, and teachers of schools of
every kind, are bound by this obligation, from which
no human laws can exempt them.
Another duty of universal obligation is, to pray to
God for his blessing on all the nations of the earth ;
and especially on kings and all that are in authority
not only that they may obtain salvation, but that
Christians under a wise and equitable administration
of law, "may lead quiet and peaceable lives in all
godliness and honesty." All are bound to join cor-
dially and fervently in the public prayers of the
church, and not to neglect the assembling themselves
together, as the manner of some is. We have en-
couragement also to agree together in smaller asso-
ciations for prayer ; and are assured that Christ will
be present in such meetings, and that the concordant
prayers there offered, will be graciously answered.
And who can doubt, that, as we are commanded " to
pray without ceasing," and " to pray every where,
holding up holy hands," family prayer is an incum-
bent duty ? But in addition to all these, " we should
enter into our closets, and shut the door, and pray to
our Father in secret ; and our Father who seeth in
secret will reward us openly."
Among the prescribed duties of Christians, there is
none which is more solemnly and emphatically incul-
cated, than a compassionate regard to the poor and
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142 good works; or,
afflicted. Indeed, the phrase " good works," is most
commonly employed in Scripture, in relation to this
single thing. In this we follow the example of Christ,
" who went about doing good," by preaching the
gospel to the poor, and by relieving the distresses of
the afflicted. And it is the assiduous performance of
this duty which recommends the gospel to the judg-
ment and conscience of men, more than any thing
else. " Pure religion and undefiled before God and
the Father, is to visit the fatherless and widows in
their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from
the world." Nothing more is necessary to convince
us of the importance of this duty, than the represen-
tation given by our Saviour, of the process of the
judgment recorded in Matt, xxv., where the destiny
of the assembled race of men is made to turn upon
the kindness shown to the disciples of Christ. "Then
shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come,
ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared
for you from the foundation of the world : for I was
an hungered, and ye gave me meat : I was thirsty,
and ye gave me drink : I was a stranger, and ye took
me in : naked, and ye clothed me : I was sick, and ye
visited me : I was in prison, and ye came unto me."
And, in answer to their inquiry, when they had done
any of these things to him? he said, " Inasmuch as ye
have done it unto one of the least of these my breth-
ren, ye have done it unto me." And to the Wicked,
the neglect of this duty is alone mentioned as the
ground of condemnation.
Among the good works which Christians are re-
quired to perform, relative duties hold a very con-
spicuous place. These, indeed, in number, greatly
exceed all other Christian duties, and no day passes
in which every one has not duties of this kind to per-
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CHRISTIAN DUTIES. 143
form. But, as the relations of men are very much
diversified by their condition in life, and standing in
society, these duties are not the same to all persons.
One is a parent, another a child ; one is a magistrate,
another a citizen ; one is a pastor, another a member
of his flock ; one is a master, another a servant ; one
is a husband, another a wife. Besides these, there are
particular professions and occupations in life ; or offices
in the church and state, all which relations give rise to
duties, which are incumbent on all who sustain these
various relations. It behoves the Christian to be con-
scientious and faithful in the discharge of all relative
duties. And, as there is a necessity for intercourse
and commerce among men, the virtues of justice and
veracity should be constantly practised, " doing unto
others as we would have them do unto us." And, in
social intercourse, to promote good fellowship, there
should be real kindness, respectfulness, candour, and
courtesy, assiduously cultivated. The standing rule
should be, to do nothing and say nothing which would
tend to the injury of our neighbour ; but continually
to seek to promote his best interests.
Man is utterly unable to perform works of super-
erogation. When he has done all that is commanded,
he must acknowledge himself to be an unprofitable
servant ; having done no more than it was his duty
to do.
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144 PRATER.
CHAPTER XXVII.
PRATER.
Prater is a duty dictated by reason. If a child is
hungry and wants bread, nature impels it to go to its
parent for a supply ; and the natural affections of pa-
rents to their offspring render them prompt to answer
such requests. And, even if they intended beforehand
to give the necessary food, in proper season ; it is nev-
ertheless pleasing to them that the child should feel
its dependence, and come and ask for what it needs.
And if this is seen by all to be reasonable and be-
coming in children toward earthly parents, how much
more reasonable and becoming that we should feel
our dependence for every good thing on our heavenly
Father, and should go to him and ask him to grant
to us such things as are necessary for our present and
eternal welfare. And on this very principle does our
Lord urge upon his disciples the duty of praying for
the Holy Spirit, in which gift ail spiritual blessings are
comprehended. His words are, " And I say unto you,
ask and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find,
knock, and it shall be opened unto you, for every one
that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and
to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son
shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he
give him a stone ? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish
give him a serpent ? or if he shall ask an egg will he
offer him a scorpion ? If ye then being evil, know
how to give good gifts unto your children, how much
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PRATER. 145
more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit
to them that ask him ?"
Prayer is no more inconsistent with the unchange-
able purposes of God, than the use of any other
means ; for God in forming his purposes had respect
to all appropriate means of producing the intended
ends, and among these prayer has an important
place.
It is a low idea of the efficacy of prayer, to confine it
to the good effect which it is adapted to produce on
the feelings of the person who offers it. Indeed, if this
were believed to be the whole benefit derived from
prayer, a great part of the good impression which it
makes on the petitioner would be lost. As we obtain .
the things which we need from earthly parents, by
asking ; so also, we receive the blessings which we
need from our heavenly Father, by praying for them.
In how many instances did Moses, by his prayers,
avert the judgments of God from the Israelites. The
prophet Samuel also, by prayer, obtained a signal vic-
tory for the people of Israel over their enemies. But
no single instance of the efficacy of prayer, recorded
in Scripture, is more remarkable, than that of the
prophet Elijah. This case is referred to, by the apostle
James, in the following manner. " The effectual fer-
vent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias
was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he
prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained
not on the earth by the space of three years and six
months ; and he prayed again, and the heaven gave
rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit."
In prayer may be properly comprehended all devo-
tional acts of the mind, and the suitable expression of
these sentiments in external gestures and words.
Adoration is one of the most suitable and solemn
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146 PRAYER.
feelings of which a creature is capable, when he comes
into the presence of the august majesty of Heaven.
Godly fear, or reverence is another feeling which
must be experienced when any just idea is entertained
of the Almighty power, terrible majesty, and awful
holiness of the Creator. Penitent confession is so ap-
propriate ta sinners, in their approaches to God, that
no one can have any sense of the divine character and
presence, without falling down before him, under a
deep impression of entire unworthiness. Even the ho-
liest men, such as Isaiah, Daniel, and the apostle John,
were overwhelmed with a feeling of unworthiness,
when God manifested himself to them, with something
of his majesty and glory.
Praise and thanksgiving are exercises of devotion
which must be excited into lively exercise, in every
pious mind, by the consideration of the wonderful
works and munificent dispensations of our heavenly
Father; and especially our praise and thanksgiving
are due for redeeming love. This part of our devo-
tional exercises will be continued through eternity.
The song begun here, will rise to its noblest strains,
when the saints in heaven, redeemed by the blood of
Christ, and saved by his power, shall, in one grand
chorus, sing, " Unto him that loved us and washed us
from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us
kings and priests unto God and his Father, to Him be
glory and dominion, forever and ever, amen."
But, that which is more properly denominated
prayer, is petition. We approach the throne of grace
to ask for such things as we need — Prayer has there-
fore, been very correctly defined to be " the offering
up of our desires unto God, in the name of Christ, for
things agreeable to his will." Desire itself is not prayer,
but the expression of our desires to God, is the essence
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PRAYER. 147
of prayer. In this there are several things to be con-
sidered.
When there is strong desire, there is a feeling of
want. Man has nothing for which he is not depend-
ent. He needs many things for the welfare and com-
fort of his body. These wants are supplied by the
beneficent dispensations of divine providence. For
these blessings he is permitted to ask : " Give us day
by day our daily bread." As to the extent of earthly
blessings, he should ask only for what is necessary,
and may be for his own good, and the glory of God.
When deprived of health or other temporal blessings,
he may seek for deliverance and for a restoration of
such favours as have been withheld ; but as it is good
to be afflicted, he should rather pray to have his suf-
ferings sanctified, than removed.
But our prayers should be chiefly offered for spirit-
ual blessings, for ourselves and others. Here, we
cannot be too importunate. We are taught, indeed,
that it is importunity in prayer, which secures the
blessing. This includes earnestness and perseverance.
We should pray and not faint ; be instant in pray-
er ; yea, pray without ceasing. Prayer, to the spirit-
ual life, is like breathing to the life of the body. We
cannot live without prayer. Our prayers should not
be confined to ourselves and our immediate connexions.
These may properly hold a first place in our petitions;
but we are bound to pray for rulers, and for all that
are in authority, and for all sorts of men, that God
would be merciful to them, and show them his salva-
tion.
Prayer should be in the name of Christ. Faith is
absolutely necessary in acceptable prayer, and faith
always has respect to the Mediator. The humble
penitent feels that he is unworthy to approach the
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148 ASSURANCE OF SALVATION.
throne of God in his own name, for he is defiled with
sin. He can only come with liberty and confidence,
when he beholds his great High Priest standing be-
tween him and the divine Majesty. The prayers of
believers are rendered acceptable and efficacious, only
through the intercession of Jesus Christ our advocate.
This is the precious incense, which is offered with the
prayers of all saints.
But faith has respect also to the promises of God.
On these it firmly relies, believing that what He hath
said, he will faithfully perform. The person who
prays in faith, confidently expects to receive whatever
God has promised to give, in answer to prayer.
Christians should therefore watch for the answer to
their petitions. They should be attentive to the pro-
vidences of God, by which prayer is often answered.
Prayer was never intended to supersede the use of
other means ; effort should always follow our prayers.
The more faithfully we labour, the better reason hav$
we to expect an answer to prayer.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
ASSURANCE OP SALVATION.
We read in the Epistle to the Hebrews, both of the
" assurance of faith," and the "assurance of hope." As
faith is itself a belief of the truth, the assurance of
faith can signify nothing else than a strong faith, an
undoubting conviction of the truth. And, as hope is
an expectation of future good, which may be more or
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ASSURANCE OF SALVATION. 149
less strong, as the evidence that the good hoped for
shall be ours, the assurance of hope is a full persua-
sion that in due time we shall realize the blessing
which we desire. According to this interpretation,
the assurance of hope does not differ from the assur-
ance of salvation.
The relation between the assurance of faith and
the assurance of hope, is hence manifest. The former
is the necessary foundation of the latter. Unless we
are fully persuaded that there is a full and suitable
salvation in Christ, it is impossible that we should be
assured that we shall obtain salvation through Him.
But as God promises eternal life to every one who
believes in Christ, when we do sincerely believe, and
when our faith is strong, it is easy to draw the infer-
ence, that the salvation of the gospel is ours. The
thing stands thus. God says, " he that believeth shall
be saved." I am conscious that I believe, therefore,
I know that I shall be saved. The strength of this
conclusion, or the assurance that I shall obtain salva-
tion, depends first on the assurance which I have that
there is salvation in Christ for every one that believes.
If I receive this declaration with some degree of du-
biety, then there being no assurance of faith, of
course, there can be no assurance of salvation. But
if this truth be received, without any wavering, then
there is a solid foundation on which the assurance of
hope may rest.
In the next place, having believed in the promise
of God, I must know certainly that I have believed,
and that my faith is genuine. For although I believe
ever so certainly in the truth of God's promise of
eternal life to him that believeth, yet, if I doubt
whether I have believed, or am uncertain whether
my faith is of that kind to which the promise is made,
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150 ASSURANCE OF SALVATION.
I cannot possess assurance of salvation. And there
seems to be some ground for a doubt of this kind, as
we read of several kinds of faith which were not
connected with salvation. And one species of faith
which was not saving, is represented as being accom-
panied with joy and every appearance of being gen-
uine, until being put to the trial, it was found to be
deficient.
Again, it ought to be remarked here, that many
persons have entertained a strong persuasion that they
were the heirs of salvation, and yet their confidence
was founded in error or delusion. Therefore, although
at first view, it would seem the easiest thing in the
world, for a true believer to arrive at assurance of sal-
vation, yet, when we take into view the deceitfulness
of the heart, and the power of Satan to transform him-
self into an angel of light, and also the numerous cases
of actual deception which have occurred, we are so
far from thinking it easy to arrive at assurance, that
we are disposed to believe that an infallible, unwaver-
ing assurance, on solid scriptural grounds, can be ac-
quired by no one, without the special witness of the
Holy Spirit. Most Christians, at least in our day, do
not possess an assurance of salvation which excludes
all doubt and fear, as to their future destiny. They
have attained to a comfortable hope, but not to the
assurance of hope ; except at some favoured moments,
when the love of God is shed abroad in their heart,
by the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven. Then
the Spirit witnesses with their spirits, that they are
the children of God.
How this witness is given, is a matter concerning
which there are different opinions. But as there are
spurious joys which may be very extatic, it is safest
to believe, that this assurance is commonly given, by
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ASSURANCE OF SALVATION. 151
bringing into lively exercise, faith, love, and joy ; so
that there can be no doubt of the existence of these
exercises, as there can be none, that they are feelings
peculiar to the children of God. The Spirit not only
enlightens the mind to discern the beauty of holiness
in the word, but to discern also, the image of the
truth made on the heart, so that by his illumination,
the believer is enabled to look back on his past expe-
rience, and to see, that, from time to time, he has
exercised true faith, love, &c; or, that he now ac-
tually is in the exercise of these graces. I do not,
however, see any reason to doubt that God may
sometimes, without any examination or comparison
of its exercises with the marks of his word, fill the
soul of the believer with a joyful persuasion of his
love, and may so pour into it the spirit of adoption,
that it shall be enabled, with filial confidence, to cry,
Abba, Father. Many testimonies to this purpose
might be collected from the experience of saints.
But alas ! many serious, conscientious persons are
always more or less under a cloud of doubt and un-
certainty, respecting their spiritual condition. These
broken reeds must not be crushed, nor this smoking
flax quenched, by any doctrine of ours; for often
among these are found the truly contrite and humble
spirits with whom Jehovah delights to take up his
abode. Where doubting does not arise from any
want of confidence in the truth of God's word, but
altogether from diffidence of the genuineness of our
own faith, it does not partake of the nature of unbe-
lief; for there is so much reason to distrust our own
hearts, that this timidity and uncertainty is often
rather an evidence of self-knowledge and humility,
than of unbelief. Still, such persons are deprived of
much comfort, which Christians ought to enjoy.
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152 ASSURANCE OP SALVATION.
These doubts are very distressing, and do not qualify
the person to exhibit the bright side of religion ta
those around him. No person should be contented
to remain under this dark cloud which so obscures
his future prospects. Assurance of salvation is at-
tainable by all true believers who assiduously seek it.
Let all then strive to obtain this inestimable blessing.
The true doctrine of assurance is taught in the
Westminster Larger Catechism, and is clearly ex-
pressed in the following words, " Such as truly be-
lieve in Christ, and endeavour to walk in all good
conscience before Him, may, without extraordinary
revelation, by faith grounded on the truth of God's
promises, and by the Spirit enabling them to discern
in themselves those graces to which the promises of
life are made, and bearing witness with their spirits
that they are the children of God, be infallibly assured
that they are in a state of grace, and shall persevere
therein unto salvation."
Again, " Assurance of grace and salvation, not
being of the essence of faith, true believers may wait
long before they obtain it ; and after the enjoyment
thereof, may have it weakened and intermitted
through manifold distempers, sins, temptations and
desertions; yet are they never left without such a
presence and support of the Spirit of God, as keeps
them from sinking into utter despair."
That assurance of salvation is attainable in this
life, is very evident from the Scriptures, both of the
Old and New Testaments. Indeed, all the saints, of
whom any expression of their spiritual state is re-
corded, appear to have possessed a full sense of their
reconciliation and acceptance with God. The only
doubt is, whether they owed their assurance to that
supernatural inspiration which they possessed, or to
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ASSURANCE OF SALVATION., 153
clear revelations to them personally, that they were
the adopted and beloved children of God. We know,
that in some cases such communications were made
to individual saints, as to Abel, Noah, Abraham,
Isaiah, and Daniel : but the mere possession of mi-
raculous gifts furnished no decisive evidence of the
spiritual state of the persons who had received
these gifts. We know that Balaam, who loved the
wages of unrighteousness, prophesied by the inspira-
tion of God; and Judas, the traitor, received the
same commission, to heal the sick, to cast out devils,
and to raise the dead, as the other disciples. More-
over, our Lord assures us, that at the last day, some
will make this a plea for admittance into his heavenly
kingdom, that, in his name, they had cast out devils,
and done many wonderful works ; but He will say
unto them, " Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity, I
never knew you."
Paul's strong assurance seems to have been the
effect of that faith which he possessed in common
with other Christians. And he felt it to be necessary
to work out his salvation with fear and trembling,
and to keep his body under, lest after preaching to
others, he himself should become a castaway. His
assurance of a crown of life at the appearing of Christ,
was founded on the consciousness of having fought a
good fight and kept the faith. The faith of the apos-
tles was of the same kind with that of Christians at
the present time : the only difference was in its
strength. And as the apostles had nothing but what
they had gratuitously received, there is no reason
known to us, why God may not grant as great grace
to some persons, in modern times, as was bestowed
on the primitive Christians, or even on the apostles.
From the view of assurance which has been given
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154 ASSURANCE OF SALVATION.
above, it may be inferred, that the true reason why
so many sincere Christians, in our day, live without
assurance,is the feebleness of their faith. They need,
therefore, to be exhorted, in the language of the apos-
tle Peter, " Wherefore, the rather, brethren, give ail
diligence to make your calling and election sure."
The apostle John teaches us how we may obtain this
precious grace of assurance. " We know that we
have passed from death unto life, because we love the
brethren." "If our heart condemn us not, then
have we confidence towards God." "My little
children let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but
in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we
are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before
Him."
Some exercised Christians fail to obtain assurance
by mistaking the evidences of true piety ; or rather by
supposing that the working of inward corruption, of
which they are conscious, is inconsistent with a state
of grace. A correct knowledge of the marks and
evidences of true religion, is of great importance, in
order to our obtaining a settled assurance. And some
humble Christians possess the blessing without giving
it its proper name. The writer recollects a conversa-
tion which passed in his presence, between an eminent
minister of the gospel, and an old lady who had been
converted under the ministry of the Rev. Samuel
Davies. This old lady had given indubitable evidence
of eminent piety for more than half a century ; but she
said to the clergyman who was conversing with her,
" I have never attained to the faith of assurance —
mine is only the faith of reliance." To which the cler-
gyman answered, " if you know you have the faith
of reliance, you have the faith of assurance."
Some persons seem to expect assurance in some
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ASSURANCE OP SALVATION. 155
extraordinary way, by an immediate divine revelation,
or by a voice from heaven. But this is enthusiasm.
Mr. Flavel makes mention of a young man who
most earnestly sought for some extraordinary evidence
of his acceptance with God ; and as he walked in the
fields vainly hoped, that the very stones would speak,
that he might know whether he was a child of God.
But afterwards, convinced of his error, he sought this
blessing in the way of self-examination, reading the
Scriptures, and other appointed means, and was not
disappointed ; for, in the use of instituted means, he
attained to a settled and comfortable assurance of his
interest in Christ. It may be remarked here, that as-
surance is not always accompanied with joy. There
may be a scriptural conviction, that a work of divine
grace has been experienced ; and at the same time
there may be no high raised affections ; nor any very
vigorous actings of faith, at the moment. This may
be called habitual assurance. But there is in the ex-
perience of many, at times, a joyful persuasion of the
mercy and favour of God. This is probably what is
meant by having " the love of God shed abroad in
our hearts by the Holy Ghost sent down from hea-
ven." Such seasons are very precious, but never last
long.
It is a sad case, when assurance for a while enjoyed,
is through sin or carelessness lost. This is often ex-
perienced by backsliders. Assurance can never be
enjoyed by those who depart from God, even although
the root of the matter be in them. And when a com-
fortable sense of the divine favour is lost, it is hard
to be recovered. Such Christians often walk mourn-
fully, with their heads bowed down as a bulrush, to
the close of life. David after his woful lapse, cries,
" Cast ine not away from thy presence, nor take thy
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156 PERSEVERANCE OP THE SAINTS.
Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joys of thy
salvation, and uphold me by thy free Spirit." — "Make
me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which
thou hast broken may rejoice."
Many pious souls, there is reason to believe, are
depressed, and their evidences beclouded, by a melan-
choly temperament. Physical causes necessarily have
a powerful effect on the exercises of the mind; and
this is felt in religion, as well as in other things
CHAPTER XXIX.
PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS.
This subject is intimately connected with the as-
surance of salvation. For if true believers may lose
their faith, and totally and finally fall away, then,
manifestly, there can be no such thing as assurance
of salvation. A person may know assuredly that he
is a child of God, and at present free from all condem-
nation ; but upon this hypothesis, he cannot possibly
be assured that he will continue in this happy state.
In the exercise of his own free will, he may depart
from God, renounce Christ and become a reprobate.
If this doctrine be admitted, that all saints are liable
to apostatize, and that there is no such thing promised
as the grace of perseverance, then Paul's declarations,
in which he expresses the fullest confidence that he
should possess a crown of life, must be understood
conditionally; provided he should persevere to the
end. And in the same manner we must construe
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PERSEVERANCE OP THE SAINTS. 157
those triumphant expressions at the close of the eighth
chapter of his epistle to the Romans. " For I am per-
suaded, that neither life nor death, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor
things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other
creature shall be able to separate us from the love of
God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." According
to this theory, we must understand the apostle to
mean, that if he continued in the faith, none of these
things should be able to separate him from the love
of God in Christ Jesus. But who knows, whether
Paul did persevere to the end? Who knows, but
that his faith failed in the last extremity ? We have
no account, in the New Testament, of the circum-
stances of his death. Indeed, if the standing of believ-
ers depends on themselves, it would not be surprising,
that any one should be overcome by temptation, and
should finally fall from a state of grace. It is possible,
then, that all the apostles might have fallen away in
the time of persecution ; for although Christ promises
to go and prepare a place for them, and that they
should sit on thrones in his kingdom, yet all this
must be understood on condition they persevered to
the end !
Those who maintain, that all true believers will cer-
tainly persevere, do not ground their opinion on any
ability which any of them have to stand. Left to
themselves, they believe, that all of them would be
sure to apostatize.
They attribute perseverance in grace, as they do
the first conversion of the soul, to the love of God.
They believe that the same power which brings the
soul from death to life, is able to preserve it in life ;
and that the gifts and callings of God are without re-
pentance, that is, without change of purpose.
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158 PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS.
Again, as believers are intimately and spiritually
united to Christ, so as to be members of his mystical
body, and since in virtue of this union, they receive
continual supplies of grace and strength as they need
these blessings, they are of opinion, that Christ the
Head, will never suffer any member actually united
to Him, to be severed from his body and to perish for
ever.
Surely the Spirit of all grace which dwells in be-
lievers, is sufficient to keep up that spiritual life which
He has generated in them ; and is able to keep them
from the danger of apostacy ; and if He can do it, he
will do it ; for whom he loves, he loves to the end.
Those whose names are written in heaven, in the
Lamb's Book of Life, before the foundation of the
world, will at last reach heaven. The kingdom
which the saints shall inherit, was prepared for them
before the foundation of the world.
Not one link of Paul's glorious chain of salvation
can be broken. " Whom He did foreknow, them he
did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his
Son, and whom he predestinated, them he also called,
and whom he called, he glorified."
The apostle Paul was confident that He who had
begun a good work in the Philippians would perform
it until the day of Jesus Christ.
Can it be believed, that the same love and power
which effectually called believers from their death in
sin, will not preserve them in a state of spiritual life
when it has been commenced ?
In the days of the apostles there were many apos-
tates ; but John, in his first Epistle, clearly teaches,
that such had never been sincere Christians. " They
went out from us, but they were not of us ; for if they
had been of us, they no doubt would have continued
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PERSEVERANCE OP THE SAINTS. 159
with us ; but they went out that it might be made
manifest, that they were not all of us."
And the apostle Paul, in his second epistle to Tim-
othy, treating of the success of heretics in subverting
the faith of some ; that is, seducing them to embrace
false doctrines 5 will by no means agree, that these
persons who were thus led astray, or their teachers,
had ever belonged to the foundation of God, or were
among his approved people ; for he says, " Neverthe-
less, the foundation of God standeth sure, having this
seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his."
But it is said, by the impugners of this doc-
trine, that though God will not forsake his people,
yet they may forsake Him ; that the promises are
made to the people of God, but when they cease to
be his people, they cut themselves off from the bless-
ings of the covenant of grace, which are all conditional,
and made to believers. Now, we admit, that if any
should cease to believe, they would be thus cut off 5
but what we maintain is, that their faith shall never
fail. If God has made promises to this effect, then
they are safe. Well, we know that Christ by his in-
tercession did keep Peter's faith from utterly failing ;
for He said, " I have prayed for thee, that thy faith
fail not." And his intercessions were not only for
Peter and the apostles, but for all who should through
their word believe on his name. And in Jer. xxxii.
40. we find an explicit promise, and solemn cove-
nant, in which God engages to preserve his people
from falling : " And I will make an everlasting cove-
nant with them, that I will not turn away from them,
to do them good." This seems to be a very full pro-
mise, and a covenant in all things well-ordered and
sure : but this is not all : He immediately adds, " And
I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall
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160 PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS.
not depart from me." And this seems to be im-
plied, when He promised, " I will put my laws in
their mind, and write them in their hearts."
In the xth. chapter of John's Gospel, our blessed Lord
speaks of himself as the good Shepherd. And he
gives as the chief characteristic of a good shepherd,
that he loves his sheep. And in his own case, his
love was so great, that he was willing to lay down
his life for the sheep. And he informs us, that those
who were truly of the number of his sheep would
hear his voice and follow him, while they would not
hear the voice of strangers. His attention to the flock
as their Shepherd, was so kind and compassionate,
that he calls each one by his name and goes before
the sheep, and leads them in the right way. From
this description it might be inferred, that Christ would
not forsake those on whom he had set his love ; and
that he would not suffer their enemies to carry them
off. Those persons who were specially the purchase
of his blood and his dying agonies, he would certainly
be disposed to save from perdition. There can be no
doubt of the desire of the great Shepherd, that these
objects of his love, and for whom he had paid a price
above all estimation, should not perish. But we are
not left to our own inferences on this subject. Our
blessed Lord has anticipated our conclusions, by his
clear and positive declarations. His gracious words
should never be forgotten. "My sheep hear my
voice, and they know me, and follow me. And I
give unto them eternal life ; and they shall never
perish, nor shall any pluck them out of my hand.
My Father which gave them me, is greater than all ;
and none is able to pluck them out of my Father's
hand." I do not know how the doctrine of the
saints' perseverance could be expressed in stronger
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PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS. 161
language. It must be evident, that if God is able to
keep them from perishing, they will be saved. And
who will dare to call in question the ability of Christ
and his Father, to preserve whom he will, from apos-
tatizing ? Surely God is able to cause even the weak-
est of them to stand. Suppose the contrary ; suppose
that one of these given by the Father to his only be-
gotten Son to be redeemed, should be overcome by
Satan the enemy of God and his people, and should
perish eternally. What a triumph to the grand adver-
sary, and what a dishonour to die Redeemer ! Shall
it ever be said, in the world of wo, 'Here is one of the
beloved of God — one specially given to the Son — one
purchased with the blood of the Son of God — one
raised from.the death of sin by the power of his Spirit
— one that heard his voice, loved and followed Him, —
such an one is eternally lost ! The Saviour was not able
to preserve this soul from falling under the power of
temptation. Satan in this contest gained the victory,
and tore away one of Christ's beloved, sheep — yea,
dismembered his mystical body; for this soul, now
damned, was once a member of the body of Christ.
Reader, can you believe this ? Do not these arguments
convince you that such a thing as this never can occur?
Again, does not Christ appear in heaven, as the
Advocate of his people? And does not the Fa-
ther hear him always? And shall not his inter-
cessions be effectual to obtain persevering grace
for all those whose cause he pleads? "He is able
to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by
Him; seeing he ever liveth to make intercession. for
them." It is the continual intercession of Christ
which preserves his disciples from falling away
totally and finally. Peter in his self-confidence fell
into an enormous and disgraceful sin ; and if he had
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162 PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS.
been left to himself, Satan would undoubtedly have
overcome him and ruined him.
And that Christ intercedes for believers as he does
not for others, we learn from that remarkable inter-
cessory prayer, which he offered before he left the
world. " I pray for them, I pray not for the world,
but for them, which thou hast given me ; for they are
thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine,
and I am glorified in them. While I was in the
world, I kept them in thy name ; those that thou
gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, except
the son of perdition." Those who oppose the doc-
trine which we defend, think that in this last clause,
the nerves of the argument drawn from this passage,
are cut ; and that as Judas was one of those given to
Christ by his Father, and he perished, therefore be-
lievers may eternally perish. But can any impartial,
intelligent Christian believe, that Judas was really in-
cluded in the number of those given to Christ by the
Father, and (or whom he prayed ? This construction
would not only be dishonourable to Christ, but it
would destroy the force and consistency of all that
Christ uttered in this remarkable prayer. If Christ
prayed not for the world, how came he to pray for
Judas, who was a thief, and covetous from the time
of his being first called to be an apostle ? And Christ
had perfect knowledge of his hypocrisy. And if he
specially prayed for him, as much as for the other
disciples, how came it to pass, that this prayer, in his
case, was ineffectual ? And if his special interces-
sions may be ineffectual, what solid ground have we
to trust in him, and why was it declared that the
Father hears him always ? But it will be asked, how
we get over the difficulty which this clause presents.
If the original Greek be construed agreeably to the
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PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS. 163
common usage of the language, there will remain no
difficulty. The sentence is elliptical, and the true im-
port undoubtedly is, And none of them is lost : but the
son of perdition is lost, who was not of the number given.
The very same construction is used, where our Lord
says, " There were many widows in Israel in the days
of Eliseus, but to none of them was he sent, but unto
a widow of Sarepta." The but here excludes the
widow of Sarepta, for she was not a widow of Israel,
but belonged to the Canaanitish nation. And in the
same connexion, "For there were many lepers in
Israel, in the days of Eliseus, but to none of them
was he sent, but unto Naaman the Syrian." Luke
iv. 21. Naaman was not one of the lepers of Israel,
but a man of a foreign nation, just as Judas was not
one whom the Saviour had kept, but was the son of
perdition. This text, therefore, properly understood,
furnishes no objection whatever, to the doctrine of the
saints' perseverance, derived from this intercessory
prayer of our Lord. And this prayer alone affords
an impregnable foundation for this precious doctrine.
It is hard to believe, that those whose names were
written in the Lamb's book of life before the founda-
tion of the world, shall utterly and eternally perish.
It is, indeed, promised to the saints of the church of
Sardis, that their names shall not be blotted out of the
book of life ; and it is reasonable to think that the
same promise is applicable to ail true believers. If
these names might be blotted out, there would be no
great cause of rejoicing that they were written in hea-
ven ; but our Lord teaches his disciples to rejoice in
this, above all things. (Luke x. 20.)
It is indeed said, " That if any one shall take away
from the words of this prophecy, God will take away
his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy
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164 PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS.
city, and from the things written in this book. ,, Rev;
xxii. 1 9. The meaning is not that such a person ever
had any part in this book, but that he never should
have. It is not said, that the names of such were
written in the book of life ; but it is declared that it
was a privilege of which they should never partake.
There is one view of this subject which I have not
seen given by the authors which I have consulted.
All accountable creatures are placed, when created, in
a state of probation. When this probation is ended,
they are confirmed in a state of holiness and happiness,
and are never more exposed to any peril of their
eternal life. Thus, when a part of the angels fell,
the remaining hosts were confirmed, and are there-
fore called " elect angels." Whether they stood by
their own inherent strength, or whether some gratui-
tous aid was afforded to them, which was not granted
to those who fell, as some suppose, we cannot certain-
ly tell. But all seem to be agreed, that the holy
angels are exposed now to no danger of perishing.
In the case of mankind, if our federal head and
representative had retained his innocence and finished
his obedience, even to the end of the time appointed
for his trial, it seems to be agreed by most, that there
would have been no trial of each individual, but all
the race would have been brought into existence in a
justified state ; not only in a state of innocence, but
in a state of confirmed holiness, and liable to no dan-
ger of sinning or perishing. Now since the second
Adam, the Representative and Surety of his chosen
seed, has rendered a complete righteousness to the
law, when the same is imputed to his people for their
justification, will they not stand at least in as safe a
condition, as they would have been in, had their first
representative fulfilled the condition of the covenant
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PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS. 165
of works ? It appears reasonable to think, that no
justified persons ever can fall away : that is, God is
engaged to grant them eternal life, and has covenanted
to prevent them, by his confirming grace, from falling
into sin and ruin.
Adam before he sinned was not in a justified state,
though in a state of innocence, because his probation
was not yet ended. So also we suppose, that the
fallen angels were never in a justified state ; they fell
also before their probation was finished. We know
of no instance of a justified person ever perishing.
And as believers are perfectly justified in Christ, they
are no longer on probation for life ; that is finished,
and, therefore, they are included in the bonds of a
covenant so well ordered, and so sure, that they can
never perish.
Again, the sins of penitent believers are fully and
absolutely pardoned ; and it is promised that these sins
shall be forever buried, and blotted out. But sup-
pose one of these pardoned sinners to fall away from
a state of grace, what will be his condition, in regard
to the innumerable transgressions already pardoned ?
Will the guilt of these be laid upon the apostate, or not?
They who maintain the doctrine that true believers
may finally fall away and perish, do also hold that
God does all he consistently can to preserve them
from apostatizing, and sincerely desires to bring them
to the possession of eternal life. Now, I would ask,
ho w is this consistent with acknowledged facts ? Some
Christians, while in the world, are exposed to much
greater temptations than others. As God foreknew
that certain persons would be unable to resist certain
temptations by which they are supposed to be over-
come, and caused finally to perish, why were they
not by the divine providence preserved from such ex-
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166 PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS.
posure? But this is not all: some Christians are
called away by death soon after their conversion, and
their salvation is secured ; while others are left to be
buffeted or seduced by temptations for many years,
by which they are finally overcome, and are lost
Now if these had been taken out of the world at as
early a period of their christian pilgrimage as the for-
mer, they would also have been saved. Where is the
impartiality of which so much is said, in relation to
these?
This doctrine has been opposed on the principle
that the belief of it tends to breed presumption, and to
encourage negligence, in working out our salvation.
We do not assert that this doctrine has never been
abused by unholy men : but what doctrine may not
be thus abused ? Certainly none more so, than the
love and mercy of God. In answer to this objection,
we would observe, that our doctrine is the persever-
ance of the saints in faith and holiness. Just so far
as any professor fails in the exercise of faith, and prac-
tice of holiness, he loses the evidence that he is a true
Christian. According to this view of the subject, he
never can persuade himself that he will persevere,
unless he is in the exercise of grace, without which
he cannot possess the evidences of being a true believer.
Again, fear is not the only, nor the most efficacious
motive which urges the Christian to activity and en-
ergy in running the gospel race. Hope has more in-
fluence on him, than fear ; and when his hope of final
success arises to assurance, he is animated with the
liveliest zeal, and impelled by the strongest motives,
to lay aside every weight, and run with patience the
race set before him. And this is consonant with ex-
perience in temporal matters. Suppose a man to
have in prospect a journey, through a very difficult
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PERSEVERANCE OP THE SAINTS; 167
and dangerous country. If he could be assured, before
setting out, that however many obstacles and enemies
he should encounter, yet he would certainly reach
the end of his journey, and come off triumphantly,
how would such assurance encourage his heart, and
nerve his body to go on courageously ! whereas, if
he entertained but small hope of success, discourage-
ment would weaken all his efforts.
It is acknowledged there are some texts of Scrip-
ture, which viewed separately, seem to teach that
true believers may fall from a state of grace ; but the
doctrine is so contrary to the great principles of the
covenant of grace, that such an interpretation of any
text as would favour it, cannot consistently with the
analogy of divine truth be admitted. We must com-
pare scripture with scripture, and thus endeavour to
ascertain the mind of the Spirit. The apparent testi-
mony of some texts of Scripture in favour of the apos-
tacy of believers, led Augustin to adopt the opinion,
that some persons, not of the number of the elect,
were really converted ; but that such never persevered
to the end, but fell from the gracious state to which
they had attained. He firmly maintained, however,
that none of the elect could perish. Probably this
opinion was adopted by Luther and some of his fol-
lowers. And some few have believed, that though
the saints might for a season fall totally away, which
they suppose must have been the case with David,
Solomon and Peter ^ yet they are always recovered,
and never finally apostatize. It is not necessary to
make any remarks on this opinion, as it has been held
by few. There are no instances in Scripture of the
final fall of real saints. To such professors as will be
found at the left hand of the Judge at the last day, it
will be said, however great their gifts, or high- their
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168 PERSEVERANCE OP THE SAINTS.
privileges, " Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity ;
i never knew you." How could this be said, if
some of them had once been in union with Christ ?
The texts of Scripture which seem to favour the
final apostacy of real Christians, we have not time nor
space, to consider in detail. We think, however, that
they may all be explained in consistency with the true
doctrine, upon one or other of the following principles.
First, that the persons spoken of as righteous, or as be-
lievers, are described according to the opinion which
they entertained of themselves, and the profession
which they made ; or secondly, that the cases are hy-
pothetical, not declaring that, in fact any should fall
away ; but stating what would be the consequence if
such an event should take place : or thirdly, that the
cases described are of those who under the external
light of divine revelation, and under the common in-
fluences of the Holy Spirit, had advanced far in the
doctrinal knowledge of Christianity, and had experi-
enced lively impressions from the truth, without hav-
ing undergone a radical change of heart Such a case
is described by our Saviour, in the parable of the
sower, in regard to such as are represented by the
seed which fell on stony ground ; such as hear the
word with joy, and for a season, give pleasing evi-
dence of piety ; but having no root in themselves, in
the time of temptation fall away.
And to the above cases, we may add that of those,
who in apostolic times, received the miraculous gifts
of the Holy Ghost; for these were not conferred only
on real Christians, as we know from the case of Judas,
and from the account given by our Lord, of the plea
which will be made by some whom he will con-
demn at the last day. They are represented as say-
ing, " Have we not in thy name cast out devils, and
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PERSEVERANCE OP THE SAINTS. 169 1
done many wonderful works ?" Combine these two
last cases, and you have a satisfactory explanation of
the character of those described in the sixth chapter
of the epistle to the Hebrews. In all ages of the
church, there are persons, who greatly resemble true
saints, not only in outward profession, but who have
feelings and exercises which are well devised coun-
terfeits of the genuine piety of the heart.
But surely it never can be, that one of those who
were chosen in Christ, before the foundation of the
world, and in time effectually called, andunited to Christ,
so as to become living members of his mystical body;
and whose sins he bore on the cross, and to whom he has
promised the constant indwelling of the Holy Spirit,
and whose names are in the book of life, should be
finally lost. The enemy of God and man shall never,
in the dark dominions over which he reigns, have it
in his power, triumphantly to boast, that he has
plucked from the hands of the great Shepherd one of
the dear lambs of his flock. No : the elect of God can
not be deceived to their ruin. Those whose names
are in the book of life shall never be cast into outer
darkness. "They shall never perish."
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170 THE SACRAMENTS.
CHAPTER XXX.
THE SACRAMENTS.
Sacraments are visible signs of invisible grace.
They are also seals of God's covenant with men ;
just as in more solemn transactions among men, be-
sides the words in which the substance of the compact,
or treaty, or deed of conveyance is contained, it has
been customary from the earliest times to have cer-
tain signs superadded, to give solemnity to the trans-
action, and to deepen the impression of the obligations
or stipulations into which the parties had entered.
And, frequently, such actions were performed as sym-
bolically represented the consequences which would
ensue from a violation of the contract, or a neglect of
the duty promised. Thus, it was customary, not only
in treaties between nations, but in the more important
transactions among individuals, to have seals append-
ed to bonds and contracts. So, of joining right hands,
and other ceremonies in marriage, and wearing rib-
ands or stars, as a sign of some military order. We
learn from Scripture, that it was customary, anciently,
in forming solemn covenants, to divide slaughtered
animals, and to cause the parties to pass between the
dissected parts, by which it would seem, an impreca-
tion was implied, that if either of the contracting par-
ties should prove unfaithful, he would in like manner,
be cut to pieces. In accommodation to the nature
and customs of men, God has, under every dispensa-
tion, appointed certain external rites, which have no
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THE SACRAMENTS. 171
signification but in connexion with the covenant to
which they are appended. For these signs or sym-
bolical actions, are never found but in connexion with
solemn covenants, which they are intended to con-
firm, or render the ratification more solemn and im-
pressive.
Another frequent use of institutions of this kind is,
to serve as memorials of events and transactions,
which it was important should not be forgotten.
Many such we have in the Old Testament.
But as there is a resemblance, Readily conceived,
between certain objects or actions and certain truths,
which is the foundation of figurative language; so
this resemblance is the principle,on which particular
signs are adopted. Every body, even a child, can see
that washing the body, or a part of it, with pure wa-
ter, fitly represents the moral purification of the soul.
And, as truth is gradually received, while some impor-
tant things are future, it has pleased God to furnish a
kind of faint prefiguration of such events, which
would serve to give some vague idea of the matter.
Thus, by the presentment of an animal of a certain
species before the altar, and then by the offerer con-
fessing his sins over its head before it was slain, and
by the sprinkling of blood by the priest, the vicari-
ous atonement for sin was prefigured for ages before
the real efficacious sacrifice was offered. And by
this ceremony kept up daily before the eyes of the
people, they were taught typically, to look for redemp-
tion by the shedding of blood, and to obtain pardon
by having their sins transferred to another who
would bear them away. Under the new dispensation
there was less occasion for these ritual services ; and,
therefore, while the old ceremonial law was abolished,
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172 THE SACRAMENTS.
no new sacraments were instituted, except Baptism
and the Lord's Supper.
According to the universal testimony of Jewish
writers, baptism was practised by the Jews on the ad-
mission of proselytes, long before the advent of Jesus
Christ. And, though circumcision was restricted to
males, the ceremony of baptism was extended also to
females, and, like circumcision, was administered to
infants.
When John, the harbinger of Messiah, was sent of
God, he commenced his ministry by preaching repent-
ance and baptism for the remission of sins. The ob-
ject of his mission was " to prepare the way of the
Lord," by arousing the attention of the people, and
bringing about a reformation in the nation. His bap-
tism was a national baptism. It was the duty of aU
the people to repent and submit to this rite, which
they generally did. The pharisees and lawyers, how-
ever, rejected the counsel of God, not being baptized
of John.
The disciples of Christ also, by his direction, admin-
istered baptism to such as acknowledged him to be
the Messiah. But baptism, as a rite of the Christian
church, was not in existence . until the new dispensa-
tion commenced, which was not until after Christ's
resurrection. Then a new commission was given to
the apostles, " to go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and
Holy Ghost." This was properly the institution of
Christian baptism ; and differed from the rite as for-
merly administered,in two respects : first, in being in
the name of the adorable Trinity, and, secondly, in
being made a badge of discipleship in the Christian
church, or a formal initiation into the visible church
of Christ. " Baptism is not to be administered to any
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BAPTISM. 178
that are out of the visible church until they profess
their faith in Christ and obedience to him ; but the
children of such as are members of the visible church
are to be baptized."
CHAPTER XXXI.
BAPTISM.
There has always been a tendency to make too much
of these external rites, and to depend unduly upon
them, as a ground on which to hope for salvation.
Thus, the Jews so exalted the importance of the rite
of circumcision, that they seem to have thought that
being descended from Abraham, and having this sign
in their flesh, insured their salvation : which false con-
fidence Christ and his apostles laboured to overthrow.
It is not wonderful, therefore, that the same error
should arise in regard to baptism. In the New Tes-
tament, baptism is both a duty and a privilege; but no
undue importance is given to it, nor any undue efficacy
ascribed to it. Paul, indeed, spent little of his time in
administering this rite. He avoided it at Corinth,
where there were divisions and factions, lest any
should say that he baptized in his own name. And
he says expressly, that Christ sent him "not to baptize
but to preach the gospel ;" which single declaration is
a refutation of the opinion that internal grace, or re-
generation, always accompanies baptism ; for in that
case, baptism was far* more important than preaching.
For Paul certainly could not convey grace by preach-
ing ; but if he could have regenerated all to whom he
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174 BAPTISM.
administered baptism, he should have given himself
up entirely to this work. These sacramental institu-
tions are not intended to be the means of conveying
grace to the subjects in some mysterious manner, but
they are intended to operate on adults by the word
of truth, which accompanies the ordinance.
Some lay a great stress on the mode in which bap-
tism is administered, insisting that a total immersion
of the body in water is essential to the right adminis-
tration. In the ceremonies of a sacrament, some
things belong to its essence, because they represent
symbolically the truth intended to be impressed on the
mind ; other things are indifferent, because they are
merely incidental, and do not affect the import of the
sacrament. If it could be proved that the act of im-
mersion was the thing in the ceremony which is prin-
cipally significant of the truth intended to be inculcated,
it would be essential ; but if the mode of applying
water has nothing to do with the emblematical signifi-
cation of the ordinance, it is an indifferent circum-
stance ; as much so as whether baptism be administered
in a vessel or in a river ; or whether in the Lord's Sup-
per, leavened or unleavened bread be used ; or wheth-
er we recline or sit upright in partaking of this ordi-
nance. And in regard to indifferent, incidental circum-
stances, which do not enter into the essence of the sa-
crament, there is no obligation to follow what all know
was the practice of Christ and the apostles ; as it is
certain that in the first institution of the sacred supper,
they reclined on couches, used unleavened bread, and
partook of it in the evening, but we do not feel bound
to imitate any of these things.
The baptism of the children of those who them-
selves were in covenant with God, though not ex-
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BAPTISM. 176
pressly mentioned in Scripture, is a practice supported
by good and sufficient reasons. It cannot be supposed
that under the gospel dispensation, the privileges of
the offspring of believers are less than under the Jew-
ish. But we know that by God's command, circum-
cision, the sign of the covenant, was administered to
all the males. They were thus brought externally
within the bonds of the covenant ; and although the
external rite of initiation has been changed, there is
no intimation given that the children of believers were
to be henceforth excluded from the visible church.
Christ was displeased with his disciples for hinder-
ing little children to come unto him, " for," said he,
" of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he took
them in his arms and blessed them."
Household baptism was practised by the apostles,
and children form a part of most households.
Infants are depraved and need the washing of regen-
eration, and are capable of being regenerated ; and
this renovation baptism does strikingly represent.
The practice may be traced up to the earliest period
of the church, and was then universal in all parts of
the world. It is scarcely credible that so great a
change should have become universal, in the church,
without being noticed by any writer of ecclesiastical
history.
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176 the lord's suffer.
CHAPTER XXXII. \
I
THE LORD'S SUFFER.
When Christ celebrated the passover for the last time
with his disciples, at the close of the feast, he institu-
ted another sacrament, bearing a strong analogy to
this Jewish festival, to be perpetually observed in his
church until he should come again. While they were
reclining around the table, he took of the bread which
remained and blessed it and brake it, and gave it to
his disciples, saying, " This is my body which is bro-
ken for you ; this do in remembrance of me. Like-
wise also the cup, after supper, saying, This cup is
the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you."
As this ordinance was intended to be social, that is,
to be celebrated by the church when assembled, Paul
calls it a communion ; " The cup of blessing which
we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of
Christ ? The bread which we break, is it not the
communion of the body of Christ ?"
Nothing can be plainer than the nature of the duty
enjoined upon the disciples, and intended to be oblig-
atory on all Christians to the end of the world ; for
the apostle Paul, who was not present at the institu-
tion of the eucharist, but received it, as he did the
gospel, by immediate revelation, when he recites the
words of institution, adds an important clause, " For
as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do
show forth the Lord's death till he come." From
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the lord's suffer* 177
which it is evident, that it was intended to be a stand-
ing memorial of the death of Christ until his second
advent.
When Christ says, " this is my body," to suppose
that he meant to teach, that the piece of bread which he
held in his hand, was literally his material body, is an
opinion so monstrous, and involving so many contradic-
tions, that it never could have originated but in a darfc
and superstitious age. In the first place, it was contra-
dicted by all the senses, for the properties of bread and
wine remained after the words were spoken, just the
same as before. In all other cases of miracles, the ap-
peal is to the senses: no example can be adduced of men
being required to believe any thing contrary to the
testimony of their senses. But if the bread which
Christ held in his hand was literally his body, he
must have had two bodies ; and if he partook of the
bread, he must have eaten his own body. He says,
" This is my body, which is broken for you." " This
is my blood, which is shed for you :" if these words
are taken literally, then Christ was already slain, and
his blood already shed ; he was, therefore, crucified
before he was nailed to the cross. Moreover, if the
bread is transubstantiated every time this sacrament
is celebrated, Christ must have as many bodies as
there are officiating priests : and while his body is
glorified in heaven, it is offered as a sacrifice on earth,
in thousands of different places. And while the glo-
rified body in heaven is no longer composed of flesh
and blood, the body made out of the bread and wine,
is a real body of flesh containing blood, as when he
tabernacled among men. And if the thing were pos-
sible, what spiritual benefit could be derived, from
devouring flesh ? From its nature, being material, it
could not nourish the spiritual life. And when re-
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178 the lord's supper.
ceived into the stomach as food, what becomes of it ?
is it incorporated, like common food, into our bodies?
— But I will not pursue the subject further. Before
a man can believe in transubstantiation, he must take
leave both of his reason and his senses.
The withholding the cup froip the laity is an open
violation of our Lord's command, and a manifest mu-
tilation of the ordinance ; and the pretence for this
presumptous departure from the express command
of Christ is both superstitious and impious ; for it im-
plies that Christ, in the institution of the cup was
wanting in wisdom, or that he was regardless of the
danger of having his blood desecrated, by being
spilt
As the Lord's Supper is a memorial of the death
of Christ, it should be celebrated often, that this great
sacrifice, on which our salvation depends, may not be
forgotten, but kept in lively remembrance in the
Christian church.
If it be inquired, in what sense is Christ present in
the eucharist ? we answer, spiritually,to those who by
faith apprehend and receive him. The idea of a bod-
ily presence in, with, or under the bread and wine, is
little less absurd than the doctrine of transubstantia-
tion. Indeed, in some respects, it is even more im-
possible, for it requires and supposes the ubiquity of
Christ's body. The truth then is, that only they who
exercise faith in Christ, as exhibited in the eucharist, .
eat his flesh and drink his blood. A participation of
the instituted signs, without faith to discern the Lord's
body, is so far from being beneficial, that it involves
the guilt of an awful crime ; for"he that eateth and
drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment
unto himself." He is guilty of the body and blood of
the Lord. " Let a man examine himself, therefore,
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THE lord's supper. 179
and so let him eat of this bread and drink of this
cup."
To make a matter of importance of mere indiffer-
ent circumstances in the celebration of the sacraments,
has been the cause of useless and hurtful contentions ;
and to insist on any thing as necessary to a sacrament,
which Christ has not expressly enjoined, is a wicked
usurpation of his authority, by adding human inven-
tions to divine ordinances.
The value of the Lord's Supper is incalculable. It
is admirably adapted to our nature. It is simple, and
its meaning easily apprehended by the weakest
minds. It is strongly significant and impressive. It
has been called an epitome of the whole gospel, as the
central truths of the system, in which all the rest are
implied, are here clearly exhibited. And it ever has
been signally blessed to the spiritual edification and
comfort of the children of God. They, therefore, who
neglect this ordinance, do at the same time, disobey
a positive command of Christ, and deprive themselves
of one of the richest privileges which can be enjoyed
on this side of heaven.
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180 THE LORD'S DAY AND DIVINE WORSHIP.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Reason teaches that- there is a God, and that He
ought to be worshipped. Had man remained in his
primeval state of integrity, social worship would have
been an incumbent duty. But, from a survey of the
constitution of man, it is evident that continual wor-
ship, whatever may be the fact in heaven, would not
have been required of him while on the earth. The
book of nature was spread out before him; and it
would have been his duty to read daily those lessons
which were taught by the heavens and the earth, the
animal, vegetable, and mineral worlds. And we
know, from express revelation, that it was appointed
unto him to keep the garden of Eden, and dress it ;
and this would have required much attention, and
vigorous exertion. It was never intended that man
should lead an idle or inactive life. Employment
would in innocency have been as necessary to his
happiness, as it is now to the human race. He was
also constituted lord of the inferior animals ; and the
exercise of this dominion would of necessity occupy a
portion of his time and attention. From a deliberate
consideration of the circumstances in which man was
placed, it may be legitimately inferred, that in order
to perform the primary duty of worshipping his Cre-
ator in that manner which was becoming and proper,
he must have had some portion of his time appropri-
ated to that service.
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THE LORD'S DAY AfcD DIVINE WORSHIP. 181
The worship due to the great Creator requires time
for the contemplation of his attributes, as revealed in
his glorious works. It requires time, also, to recollect
all the manifestations of his wisdom and goodness in
the dispensations of his Providence, and to give vocal
expression to feelings of gratitude for the benefits re-
ceived, and the happiness bestowed. No doubt, de-
votional feelings were habitual in the hearts of our
first parents. No doubt, they sent up, more formally,
their morning and evening orisons ; but more time is
heeded to draw off the thoughts from visible things,
and to concentrate them on the great invisible First
Cause — the Giver of existence, and of all its capaci-
ties and enjoyments. Short snatches of time are not
sufficient to perform this noblest of all duties in a pro-
per manner. A whole day, at certain periods, was
needed, so that there might be time for the contem-
plation of divine things, and for the full and free exer-
cises of devotion. And as man is a social being, and
so constituted, that by uniting with others who have
the same views and feelings, his own through sym-
pathy are rendered more animating and pleasing, it
is evident that it was intended that mankind should
worship and praise God in a general and public, as
well as in an individual and private capacity. Now,
it is too obvious to need proof, that social worship
requires stated times, known to all the people, on
which they may assemble for this divine employment.
What proportion of time should be consecrated to this
service, the reason of man, prior to experience, could
not have determined. If it had been left free by
the law of God, it would have been difficult to
agree on the proportion; and' if agreed upon, the
obligation to set apart the due proportion of time
would not have been so binding and sacred, as if the
16
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J8$ THE LOBD's DAY AND DIVINE WORSHIPr
Almighty Creator should designate the day which
should be employed in his service. And behold the
amazing condescension of God ! With some view tp
♦his very thing, He was pleased to perform the work
of creation in six days, and to rest on the seventh 5
thus setting an example to his creature man ; for He>
not only rested on the seventh day, but sanctified it &
that is, set it apart to a holy use — to be employed, not
in bodily labour or converse with the world, but ia
the contemplation of the works and attributes of God*
find in holding delightful communion with his Maker*
God could have commanded the world into existence,
with all its various furniture, and with all its species of
living creatures, in a single moment; but for man's sake,
He created the heavens, and the earth, and the sea,
the light, and the air, and vegetables, and animals, in
six successive days, and then ceased to work ; not
that the Almighty could be weary or need rest \ but
for the purpose of teaching man that whilst he might
lawfully spend six days in worldly employments, ho
must rest on the seventh day. This day, from the
beginning, was a holy day. As the worship of God
is .the highest duty of man, the first express indication
of the divine will in relation to man was, that the
seventh part of his time should be sacred to the ser-
vice of his Creator.
The sabbath thus instituted, as the very first provision
for man's religious services, was the seventh from the
commencement of the work of creation ; but as man
was made on the sixth day, the sabbath was his first
day, after he saw the light, and breathed the air of hea-
ven. This deserves particular notice ; for it may have
a connexion with the change of the day of rest after the
resurrection of Christ, The supposition is — and it is
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THE LORD'S BAT AND DIVINE WORSHIP. 183
not given for a clearly revealed truth — that the first
day of the week, according to human computation,
was the day of rest from Adam to Moses ; but that
then, for some special reason, the day was changed
to the seventh. Afterwards, when the Mosaic eco-
nomy was terminated, at the resurrection of Christ,
the original day, appointed at first to be the sabbath,
was restored as a matter of course. Let every one
exercise his own judgment on this point : it is no ar-
ticle of faith ; but merely a probable conjecture.
It is wonderful to find learned commentators trying
to prove that no day was sanctified at the beginning \
but that Moses mentions it in his history of the crea-
tion, by way of prolepsis, or anticipation. But this is
an unnatural and forced construction, and invented
without any cogent reason ; for what absurd conse-
quence follows the obvious meaning of the text ? No :
the absurdity, as far as there is one, cleaves to this
hypothesis : for when the fourth commandment wa«
proclaimed from Sinai, and written by the finger of
God on one of the stone tables, the reason given fo*
sanctifying the sabbath day is, that " in six days God
made the heavens and the earth, and the sea, and all
that in them is, and rested on the sabbath day, and hal-
lowed it." If the contemplation of the work of crea-
tion was the object of setting apart this day, is it not
far more reasonable to suppose that it would be ob-
served from the very commencement of the world,
than that this should commence two thousand years
afterwards ? The omission of any distinct mention
of the sabbath during the period between Adam
and Moses, furnishes no argument against the plain
interpretation of Gen. ii. 2, 3 ; for many other things
were omitted in the concise history which we have ;
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184 THE LORD'S DAT AND DIVINE WORSHIP.
and institutions which are regularly observed, do
not require to be mentioned. Or, if we should sup-
pose that, in the wickedness of antediluvian times,
this original appointment was neglected, and not re-
vived until Moses, this will account for its omission
in the sacred history.
If, then, the sabbath was given to man while in
Paradise, it is surely in force ever since; at least,
where divine revelation has been enjoyed. It is also
a well-ascertained fact, that in very ancient times, the
seventh day was, among the heathen, reckoned sa-
cred. The division of the week into seven days
among all ancient nations, can only be accounted
for by supposing an original institution of this kind.
That the days of the week were named, among
ihe heathen, from the sun, moon, and planets, does
by no means furnish a satisfactory account of the
division of time into weeks of seven days. The
number of persons who knew any thing of the
planets was small ; and they never could have had
influence, from the circumstance that there were
seven celestial bodies, to have introduced the divi-
sion of time into weeks of seven days. The true
state of the fact no doubt was, that this division
was received by tradition, as a thing of this kind
can be handed down through numerous ages, with-
out the aid of written records. And when the na-
tions turned to idolatry, their principal deities were
the sun, moon, and planets ; to each of which they
assigned a residence, and worshipped them on stated
days of the week : in consequence of which, they
gave the names of their gods to those days on
which they were respectively worshipped.
When the sabbath is first mentioned by Moses, after
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THE LORD'S DAY AND DIVINE WOkSHlP. 135
the exodus, there is no appearance of its being a new
institution; but it is referred to as a day accustomed to
be observed ; or, at least, as one on which it was not law-
ful to perform the common labours of the week. The
mention of it occurs in the account of the descent of the
manna. It is said, " On the sixth day, they gathered
twice as much as on other days. And he said unto
them, this is that which the Lord hath said, to-morrow
is the rest of the sabbath ; bake that which ye will
bake to-day, and seethe that ye will seethe ; and that
Which remaineth over, lay up for you, to be kept un-
til the morrow. And Moses said, Eat that to-day, for
to-day is a sabbath unto the Lord. And so the peo-
ple rested on the seventh day." — Exod. xvi. 23. Evi-
dently, this was no part of the ceremonial law, which
was not yet given ; and no new institution was ever
established in this incidental manner. It seems clear*
that the reference is to a day of rest, of which the peo-
ple had some knowledge.
The decisive argument for the perpetual obligation of
the sabbath is the fourth commandment. The ten com-
mandments, as being of a moral nature, and therefore
always binding, were promulgated in a very different
manner from the other institutions of Moses. They were
first uttered in a voice of thunder, from the midst of the
fire on Sinai, and were then inscribed by the finger of
God on two tables of hewn stone. Now, it is admitted,
that all the other precepts of the Decalogue are moral ;
and would it not be an unaccountable thing that a
ceremonial, temporary commandment should be insert-
ed in the midst of these moral precepts ? This is the
law which Christ says he came not to destroy, but to ful-
fil. None of these commandments have been abro-
gated ; and therefore the fourth, as well as the others,
16*
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189 THE LORD'S DAY AND DIVINE WOBSHIP.
remains in full force. And it is remarkable that
the prophets, in denouncing the sins of the people,
always mention the violation of the sabbath in
the same catalogue with the transgression of moral
precepts.
It may seem to cursory readers of the New Testa-
ment, that our Lord abrogated the sabbath, and in
his own conduct disregarded it. But this is far from
being a correct view of the fact The Pharisees in-
sisted on such a rigid observation of the day of rest,
as to prohibit works of real necessity and mercy. This
superstitious and over-scrupulous opinion, our Saviour
denounced, and showed, that healing the sick, and
satisfying the cravings of hunger, were things lawful
to be done on the sabbath. And what renders it cer-
tain that this is a correct view of the matter is, that
our Lord justifies his conduct by the practice of the
saints in ancient times, when the sabbath was in full
force by the acknowledgment of all, and by the provi-
sions of the Levitical law itself, which required the
priests to perform double labour on the sabbath. And
he, moreover, showed, that the accusation against him,
for a violation of the sabbath, was hypocritical 5 be-
cause, the very persons who made it, would pull an ox
or sheep out of a pit into which it had fallen, on the
sabbath day ; and also, because they thought it no vio-
lation of the sacredness of the sabbath, to lead an ox or
ass to watering, though they objected to the disciples
satisfying their hunger on that day.
Our Lord was as much opposed to the perversion
of the commandment as to disobedience. He had no
respect for the superstitious and unduly rigorous opi-
nions and practices of the self-righteous Pharisees. He
taught — and exemplified it in his own conduct — that
" the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the
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THE LOHD's DAY AND DIVINE WORSHIP. 187
sabbath." One of his expressions has evidently been
misunderstood, by some interpreters. It is where he
says, that " the Son of Man is Lord also of the. sab-
bath." They have interpreted this to mean, that
Christ claimed the right to do those things on the sab-
bath, which would be unlawful to others on that day.
But this cannot be the meaning ; for Christ was made
under, the law, and had bound himself to obey it. He
came not to destroy the law, but to fulfil it A breach
of the fourth commandment would have been sin in
him, as much as in any other. I take the meaning to be,
that as he appointed the sabbath, so he best knew how
to interpret his own law.
There is a text in Paul's epistle to the Romans,
which has been supposed to teach that it is a matter
of indifference whether we observe the sabbath or
not. — " One man esteemeth one day above another ;
another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man
be fully persuaded in his own mind." But evidently,
the question here discussed relates to the ceremonial
law. It relates not to the sabbath ; which, as we have
seen, was no part of the ceremonial law, but be-
longed to the moral code. The ceremonial law was
virtually abrogated by the death of Christ; but all
Christians were not yet enlightened to understand
their Christian liberty; and such were indulged in
their continued observance of these rites. The apostle
is treating here of meats and drinks and festival days,
the binding obligation of which had ceased.
But in the epistle* to the Colossians, Paul says, "Let
no man, therefore, judge you, in meat or drink, or in
respect of a holy day, or of the new moon, or the sab-
bath days." Here, again, the ceremonial law is obvi-
ously the subject of discourse. He is speaking of
" meats/ ' « drinks/ * " new moons,"and " sabbath days/ '
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188 THE LORD'S DAT AND DIVINE WORSHIP.
And the word sabbath relates to the numerous sab-
baths of the ceremonial law, distinct from the weekly-
sabbath. Whenever a festival of the law continued
eight days, the first and last were always kept as sab-
baths. Or the reference might be to the sabbatical
year, for the word days is not in the original.
But on supposition that the weekly sabbath was in-
tended, the meaning might be that the Jewish sabbath,
namely, the seventh day of the week, was no longer:
obligatory on Christians, since they had, by divine
direction, adopted the first day for their day of sacred
rest and of holding public assemblies for the worship
of God. This leads to the inquiry, what evidence
have we that such a change was ever made by divine
authority ? The uniform practice of Christians, to meet
on the first day of the week, from the very time of
Christ's resurrection, is strong evidence that thischange
was introduced by Christ and the apostles. It was
suitable, that as the worship of God by his people,
would have principally respect to the work of redemp-
tion, it should be celebrated on that day on which
it was made manifest that this glorious work was
completed. Accordingly, Christ having risen from
the dead, always met his disciples on this day. And
afterwards, the apostles and the churches were ac-
customed to come together on this day, "to break
bread," that is to celebrate the Lord's supper. And
when the apostle wrote his first epistle to the Corin-
thians, it was already established as a custom, not only
in the church of Corinth, but in the churches of Ma-
cedonia and Galatia, that their contributions for the
poor, should be collected on this day. From the apos-
tolical practice, we rightly infer the divine authority
for this change.
So generally was the first day of the week ob-
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THE LORD'S DAT AND DIVINE WORSHIP. 189
served, in commemoration of Christ's resurrection, and
for the celebration of religious worship, that in the
times of the apostles, it had obtained the significant de-
nomination of the Lord's Day. That this appellation
really was applied to the first day of the week by the
apostle John, in the Apocalypse, is evident, because
it can, with no appearance of reason, be applied to
any other day ; and also, because this became a com-
mon appellation of that day among Christians in all
subsequent ages to this time, as appears by the testi-
mony of Justin Martyr, and others.
It may still seem strange to some that, if the fourth
commandment was of perpetual obligation, it should
never have been expressly inculcated in the New Tes-
tament, nor the violation of this precept be placed in
the many catalogues of immoralities found in the
writings of the apostles.
To remove this difficulty, it may be observed, that
without a divine revelation, the heathen could not
know what portion of time, or what particular day
should be observed. They were bound to appropriate
a due proportion of time to the worship of God, but
what that proportion should be, reason could not de-
termine. It can scarcely be considered, therefore,
that they sinned in not observing the sabbath.
Though this is, by the prophets, always charged on
the Jews as a great sin, yet they do not denounce
the Gentiles on account of their neglect of the sab-
bath. Yet such strangers as lived in Judea were
bound to regard this day.
Again, at the time of our Saviour's advent, the ex-
ternal violation of the sabbath was not common
among the Jews ; but, on the contrary, their principal
teachers — the Scribes and Pharisees — had inculcated
a degree of rigour in keeping the sabbath which was
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190 THE LORD'S DAY AND DIVINE WORSHIP.
contrary to its design, which superstition our Lord
condemned, and showed, both by his discourses and
his actions, that the sabbath was made for man, and
not man for the sabbath.
And in regard to converts to Christianity from
among the heathen, they would be so desirous to hear
the word, and attend on the ordinances which were
administered on this day, that they stood in no need
of admonition on this subject. When any, however,
began to grow cold, and to decline in their religious
zeal, as was the case with many of the Hebrews, to
whom Paul wrote, they also began to neglect the
public assemblies, which were held on this day, and
were admonished, by the apostle, in the following
words : — " Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves
together, as the manner of some is."
Unless we had a particular day set apart, by divine
authority for the worship of God, this important duty
could never be performed in an edifying manner ; and
public worship would, for the most part, fall into dis*
use. And if a certain day should be agreed upon by
the church, or by the civil government, it would want
that authority and sanctity which are necessary to its
general observance. As it is, we find how difficult it
is to get men to cease from their earthly cares and
pursuits on this day, although it has been almost
demonstrated that they are rather losers than gainers,
even in a worldly point of view, by the breach of this
holy commandment. It was, therefore, wisely placed
among the most binding precepts of the moral law.
It is unnecessary to dilate on the manifold blessings
which the institution of the sabbath confers on man.
This has been done, of late, in the clearest manner,
by a reference to facts, derived in part from the ex-
perience of worldly men.
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THE LOBD's DAY AND DlVlftf! WORSHIP. 191
This chapter shall, therefore, be concluded by a few
directions for the observance of the Lord's day.
1. Let the whole day be consecrated to the service
of God, especially in acts of worship, public and pri-t
vate. This weekly recess from worldly cares and
avocations, affords a precious opportunity for the
study of God's word, and for the examination of our
own hearts. Rise early, and let your first thoughts
and aspirations be directed to heaven. Meditate
much and profoundly on divine things, and endeavour
to acquire a degree of spirituality on this day which
will abide with you through the whole week,
2. Consider the Lord's day an honour and delight.
Let your heart be elevated in holy joy, and your
lips be employed in the high praises of God. This
day more resembles heaven, than any other portion
of our time ; and we should endeavour to imitate the
worship of heaven, according to that petition of the
Lord's prayer — *' Thy will be done on earth as it is in
heaven." Never permit the idea to enter your mind,
that the sabbath is a burden. It is a sad case, when
professing Christians are weary of this sacred rest,
and say, like some of old, " When will the sabbath
be gone, that we may sell corn, and set forth wheat ?"
As you improve this day, so probably will you be
prospered all the week.
3. Avoid undue rigour, and Pharisaic scrupulosity ;
for nothing renders the Lord's day more odious.
Still keep in view the great end of its institution;
and remember that the sabbath was instituted for the
benefit of man, and not to be a galling yoke. The
cessation from worldly business and labour is not for
its own sake, as if there was any thing morally good
in inaction, but we are called off from secular pursuits
on this day, that we may have a portion of our time
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192 THE LORD'S 'DAY AND DIVINE WORSHIP.
to devote uninterruptedly to the worship of God.
Let every thing then be so arranged in your house-
hold, beforehand, that there may be no interruption
to religious duties, and to attendance on the means of
grace. There was undoubtedly a rigour in the law
of the sabbath, as given to the Jews, which did not
exist before ; and which does not apply to Christians.
They were forbidden to kindle a fire, or to go out of
their place on the sabbath ; and for gathering a few
sticks, a presumptuous transgresssor was stoned to
death. These regulations are not now in force.
As divine knowledge is the richest acquisition
within our reach, and as this knowledge is to be
found in the word of God, let us value this day, as
affording all persons an opportunity of hearing and
reading the word. And as the fourth commandment
requires the heads of families to cause the sabbath to
be observed by all under their control, or within
their gates, it is very important that domestic and cu-
linary arrangements should be so ordered, that serv-
ants and domestics should not be deprived of the op-
portunity of attending on the word and worship of
God which this day affords, by being employed in
preparing superfluous feasts, as is often the case. The
sabbath is more valuable to the poor and unlearned
than to others, because it is almost the only leisure
which they have, and because means of public in-
struction are on that day afforded them by the preach-
ing of the gospel. If we possess any measure of the
true spirit of devotion, this sacred day will be most
welcome to our hearts ; and we will rejoice when they
say, " Let us go unto the house of the Lord." To
such a soul, the opportunity of enjoying spiritual
communion with God will be valued above all price,
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THE LORD'S DAY AND DIVINE WORSHIP. 193
and be esteemed as the richest privilege which crea-
tures can enjoy upon earth.
4. Whilst you conscientiously follow your own
sense of duty in the observance of the rest of the
sabbath, be not ready to censure all who may differ
from you in regard to minute particulars, which are
not prescribed or commanded in the word of God.
The Jews accused our Lord as a sabbath-breaker, on
many occasions, and would have put him to death for
a supposed violation of this law, had he not escaped
out of their hands. Beware of indulging yourself
in any practice which may have the effect of leading
others to disregard the rest and sanctity of the sabbath.
Let not your liberty in regard to what you think may
be done, be a stumbling-block to cause weaker bre-
thren to offend, or unnecessarily to give them pain,
or to lead them to entertain an unfavourable opinion
of your piety.
5. As, undoubtedly, the celebration of public wor-
ship and gaining divine instruction from the divine
oracles, is the main object of the institution of the
Christian sabbath, let all be careful to attend on the
services of the sanctuary on this day. And let the
heart be prepared by previous prayer and meditation
for a participation in public worship, and while in
the more immediate presence of the Divine Majesty,
let all the people fear before him, and with reverence
adore and praise his holy name. Let all vanity, and
curious gazing, and slothftdness, be banished from
the house of God. Let every heart be lifted up on
entering the sanctuary, and let the thoughts be care-
fully restrained from wandering on foolish or worldly
objects, and resolutely recalled when they have
begun to go astray. Let brotherly love be cherished,
when joining with others in the worship of God.
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194 DEATH.
The hearts of all the church should be united in
worship, as the heart of one man. Thus, will the
worship of the sanctuary below, be a preparation
lor the purer, sublimer worship in the temple above.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
DEATH.
All the doctrines and duties of religion have relation
to a future state. All religion is founded on the sup-
position that man will live after the death of the body.
The importance of any doctrine or religious institu-
tion, depends very much on its bearing on the future
destinies of men. Religion, therefore, teaches its vo-
taries to be much occupied with the contemplation of
the unseen world. It is especially the province of
faith to fix the attention of the mind on these awful
but invisible realities, and by this means to draw off
the too eager affections from the objects of the present
world. Of whatever else men may doubt, they can-
not be sceptical in regard to death. The evidences
of the certainty of this event to all, are so multiplied,
and so frequently obtruded on our attention, that all
know that it is appointed for them once to die ; and
yet, notwithstanding this certainty, and the frequent
mementos which we have, most men are but slightly
impressed with their mortality, until death actually
comes near, and eternity, with its awful realities, be-
gins to open before them.
Death is, according to Scripture, " the wages of
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DEATH. 195
sin." By sin death entered into the world. The
death of the body is a part of the punishment of sin ;
except in the case of the believer* who is freed
from the condemnation of the law ; and to whom
death, though frightful and painful, is no curse, but
rather a blessing. For, by the death of Christ, as his
Surety, the penalty of the law, has been exhausted.
" There is no condemnation to them who are in
Christ Jesus." To them " it is a gain to die." To
them, the monster has no sting. To them, death is a
deliverance from sin and suffering, and an entrance
into perfect holiness and happiness. As soon as the
true Christian departs, he is with Christ, and is like
him, and beholds his glory. Therefore, Paul in his
inventory of the rich possessions of the saints, reckons
death as one : " For all things are yours, whether Paul
or Apollos, or Cephas, or things present, or things to
come, or life or death, all are yours, and ye are
Christ's, and Christ is God ? s."
All we know of death is, that it is a separation of
the soul from the body ; the consequence of which to
the latter is, an immediate disorganization and cor-
ruption. As it was taken from the dust, so it returns
to dust again. But as to the soul, being essentially
living and active, it continues its conscious exercises,
but in what way, when deprived of its usual organs,
we cannot tell. As all our experience has been in
connexion with bodily organs, we of course can know
nothing of the exercises of mind in a state where no
such organs are possessed. All attempts, therefore,
to imagine what the condition of the soul in a sepa-
rate state is, must be vain.
But we need not be perplexed or troubled on ac-
count of our ignorance of the future state. We may
well trust, in this case, as in others, our divine Re-
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196 DEATH.
deemer and faithful Friend, to arrange all matters
for his own glory, and for our benefit. The gracious
declaration, that " all things work together for good
to them who love God, and are the called according
to his purpose," is not only true, in relation to their
pilgrimage on earth, but also in regard to their pas-
sage through the valley of the shadow of death ; so
that they need fear no evil, for the great Shepherd
has promised to be with- them, and to comfort them,
with his rod and his staff; "When heart and flesh
fail, he will be the strength of their heart, and their
portion for ever." "Precious in the sight of the
Lord is the death of his saints."
Although little is revealed respecting the mode of
existence and enjoyment in a separate state, for the
plain reason, that no description could be understood
by us ; yet we may confidently trust our blessed Re-
deemer to provide for the guidance and comfort of
the soul, when it enters an unknown world. When
Lazarus died, angels stood ready to receive and con-
voy his departing spirit ; and we have no reason to
think that this favour was peculiar to this saint ; but
rather that it was recorded in this instance, to teach
us, that the same might be expected in every case of
the death of a true believer.
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THE RESURRECTION. 197
CHAPTER XXXV.
THE RESURRECTION.
Leaving, therefore, the intermediate state between
death and judgment, in that obscurity in which reve-
lation has left it, let us proceed, briefly to contemplate
those important events connected with our future ex-
istence, concerning which the Scriptures speak plain-
ly; I mean the resurrection and judgment The
redemption purchased by the merit and death of
Christ, respects the body as well as the soul. The
redemption of the body is one of those things for
which believers wait in hope. Although the threat-
ening, that unto dust it shall return, will be verified;
yet, the body itself shall rise again. Christ is " the
resurrection and the life." " For," said Christ to the
Jews, " the hour is coming in the which all that are
in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come
forth ; they that have done good, to the resurrection
of life, and they that have done evil, to the resurrec-
tion of damnation." " Since by man came death, by
man also came the resurrection of the dead ; for, as in
Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made
alive." " Knowing that he which raised up the Lord
Jesus, shall raise up us also by Jesus."
When it is asserted, that all must die, and be raised
again, those must be excepted who shall be alive
upon the earth when Christ shall come ; for, " behold,"
says Paul, " I show you a mystery ; we shall not all
sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in
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198 THE JUDGMENT.
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump," " For
the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a
shout and with the voice of the archangel, and with
the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise
first Then we which are alive and remain, shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds to meet
the Lord in the air ; and so shall we ever be with the
Lord."
As to the difficulties which reason may suggest in
regard to the resurrection of the same body, we need
give ourselves no trouble. Let us believe, that
" with God all things are possible, and that what he
hath promised he is able to perform." " Why," says
Paul, in his speech before Agrippa, " why should it
be thought a thing incredible with you, that God
should raise the dead ?"
CHAPTER XXXVI.
THE JUDGMENT.
Immediately after the resurrection, comes the judg-
ment of men and devils. The time of this event is
called, the " last day," and the " day of judgment,"
(2 Pet. iii. 7.)
" For he hath appointed a day in which he will
judge the world in righteousness, by that Man whom
he hath ordained." Acts xvii. 31. "It is appointed
unto men once to die, but after this the judgment."
Heb. ix. 27. " For we must all appear before the
judgment seat of Christ, that every one may receive
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THE JUDGMENT. 199
the things done in his body, according to that he hath
done, whether it be good*>r bad." 1 Cor. v. 10. " I
charge thee, therefore, before God and the Lord Jesus
Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead, at his
appearing and kingdom." 2 Tim. iv. 1. "And the
angels which kept not their first estate, but left their
own habitation, he hath reserved in chains under dark-
ness unto the judgment of the great day." Jude 6.
"For God shall bring every work into judgment, with
every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether
it be evil." Eccl. xii. 14.
The end of appointing a day of judgment is, that
the justice of God may be manifested, in his treatment
of his creatures, and that the righteous may be vindi-
cated from all those calumnies which, in this world,
were heaped upon them. When the conduct of the
wicked shall be disclosed, and all their secret motives
and purposes brought to light, it will be manifest to
the whole universe, that their condemnation is just,
and especially, when it is seen, that punishment is ex-
actly proportioned to the guilt of the offender. But
the degree of guilt will not be measured by the enor-
mity of the outward act alone ; but the light and
privileges enjoyed by some, will give such crimson
colour to their crimes, that their punishment will be
greater than that of much more atrocious sinners, who
lived in ignorance of the truths of God ; according to
the wo pronounced by our Saviour, against Chorazin,
Bethsaida, and Capernaum, when he says, that it will
be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of
judgment, than for the first two cities, and more tol-
erable for Sodom than for the last.
Every one must perceive the fitness of appointing
Christ to be the Judge, since all power in heaven and
earth is committed unto him, and he is made head
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$00 THE JUDGMENT.
over all things to his church. As he was arraigned
at a human tribunal and jmjustly condemned, it is
suitable that his enemies should behold him on the
throne of his glory. It is on many accounts suitable
that they who pierced him should see him coming
in the clouds of heaven ; and that all those who con-
spired his death, and who with wicked hands crucified
the Prince of life, should be brought to answer for
their atrocious crimes at the tribunal of Him whom
they maliciously accused, unjustly condemned, and
cruelly put to death. Another reason why God man-
ifest in the flesh should be constituted Judge of quick
and dead, is, that he can appear visibly in his proper
person, which the Father cannot. And as his disci-
ples can only be pronounced acquitted on account of
his perfect righteousness, it is altogether suitable that
he should be on the judgment-seat to acknowledge
them. Their conduct will, also, be exhibited, not as
answering the demands of the law, but as evidence of
their sincere faith in his name ; and also, because the
reward bestowed on them will be measured by their
good works. Whether their secret sins will on that
day be brought to light, has been disputed; but, as the
glory of the Redeemer will be enhanced in proportion
to the guilt and misery of the redeemed, there is no
solid reason why the sins of believers should be kept
secret, especially as many of their sins must be known
even to the wicked. Those texts which speak of the
sins of God's people as blotted out, as buried in the
sea, as covered, &c.,do all relate to the pardon of sin ;
but not to its concealment at the day of judgment.
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THE STATE OF GLORIFICATION. 201
CHAPTER XXXVII.
heaven; or, the state of GLORIFICATION.
Some things are hard to be believed, they are so good
and glorious. That such poor, ignorant, imperfect,
and unworthy creatures, should ever arrive at a state,
in which they shall " know as they are known," and
shall be free from all imperfection in their moral
exercises, and shall be continually as happy as they
are capable of being, is hard for us in our present
state distinctly to conceive of; and therefore the
glorious realities of another world make, commonly,
but a feeble impression on the minds of Christians.
Perhaps a more deep and vivid impression of the
nearness and glory of the heavenly state would so
absorb their minds as to render them unfit to perform
the common business of this life. It is, however,
exceedingly desirable, that the children of God should
think more of the heavenly state, and have a more
habitual impression of the felicity and purity of the
celestial world, than they commonly possess. In this
brief summary, our object shall be, in the simplest
manner, to exhibit, without exaggeration or amplifi-
cation, what is revealed in the sacred Scriptures
respecting the condition of the righteous after the
judgment is brought to a close. And may the Spirit
of God enlighten our blind minds to perceive the
reality, felicity, and glory of the heavenly state !
The righteous, at the day of judgment, will be
openly acknowledged and acquitted; and shall re-
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202 heaven; or,
ceive from the Judge a gracious welcome into his
kingdom and glory ; for then shall the King say to
those on his right hand, " Come, ye blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from
the foundation of the world." Their minds will, no
doubt, be wonderfully enlarged ; and it is no extra-
vagant idea, and is altogether consistent with analogy,
to suppose, that we have now in our mental constitu-
tion, the germ of faculties which have never been
developed in this world, because here their exercise
was not needed ; but which, upon our transition into
the celestial world, will be brought into full activity,
and will qualify us to participate in the social inter-
course, and in the employments of the heavenly state.
There, the glorious attributes of God will be clearly
exhibited to the understanding. There, the whole
current of the affections will be concentrated on
Christ, through whom the Father manifests himself.
There, every desire, every volition, every thought,
will be in conformity with the divine will. Nothing
will be wanting to that perfection of sublime and
pure enjoyment, of which each individual is capable;
for although the happiness of every one will be com-
plete, yet there will be many degrees, as some will
have larger capacities than others ; as many vessels
of different dimensions, cast into the sea, will all be
full, yet their contents may be vastly different.
As all rational happiness is founded in knowledge
of objects suited to satisfy and fill the rational mind,
it is reasonable to think, that in heaven there will be
a gradual progress in knowledge ; and as the object,
even the divine attributes, is infinite, this progress
may, indeed must, go on progressively through eter-
nity. And hence we can understand why it is that
the joys of heaven admit of no alloy from their long
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THE STATE OP GLORIFICATION. 203
continuance, or constant repetition. New and inter-
esting discoveries of celestial objects, will furnish
continual novelty and variety to entertain the spiritual
taste of the rational mind.
The exercise of the social affections will be a source
of pure and unspeakable felicity. There, no envious,
narrow, or selfish feelings will exist, to interrupt the
sweet communion of kindred spirits. The unity and
harmony of spirit in the continual praise of God, will
be a source of the most pure and elevated enjoyment,
far above what tongue can express or heart conceive.
There, indeed, all believers will be melted down, as
it were, into one, and will constitute one glorious
body, Christ being the Head.
The bodies of the saints will be exactly suited to
the celestial world, and its delights and employments.
These bodies of flesh and blood, created from the
dust, will, at the resurrection, be so changed, that
they will be fashioned like unto Christ's body, which
undoubtedly, is the most glorious visible object in
the universe. It would be vain and presumptuous
for us to imagine what will be the structure, the
organs, and the habiliments of the glorified bodies
of the saints. The nearest approximation which
we can make to a conception of this matter, will
consist merely in removing from our minds all
those weaknesses and imperfections which cleave to
these earthly bodies. Paul has, with the pen of in-
spiration, written nothing more sublime, than in his
discourse respecting the resurrection of the bodies of
the saints : 1 Cor. xv. " It is sown in corruption, it
is raised in incorruption ; it is sown in weakness, it
is raised in power ; it is sown a natural body, it is
raised a spiritual body :" Further on, the Apostle
adds, " So, when this corruptible shall have put on
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204 hell; or, the
incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on im-
mortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying
that is written, death is swallowed up in victory." In
heaven there is no sickness, no tears, no death, no
sin, no weariness, no alloy, no sleep, no fear ; but
everlasting joy and glory shall crown the heads of
the redeemed. And this felicity will not only be un-
interrupted, but eternal in its duration ; for while the
wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment
the righteous shall go into life eternal.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
hell; or, the state op future misery.
The most incomprehensible of all mysteries is, that
moral evil should have a place in the universe of an
infinitely wise, holy, and powerful God. We could
construct a very plausible argument, a priori, to
prove from the above premises, that moral evil never
could be permitted to exist in the world. But how
futile are all reasonings against facts experienced every
moment, and by every man. The philosopher who
undertook to demonstrate that there could be no such
thing as motion, received the right answer, when the
person addressed, uttered not a word, but rose up and
walked. So we may answer all arguments against
the possibility of the existence of evil, by pointing to
the prison, the hospital, and the grave. We need not
go so far ; we need only refer the sophist to his own
experience. Now, if moral evil have an existence,
it is evident that pain or natural evil must follow it.
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STATE OF FUTURE MISERY. 205
No conviction of the human mind is clearer or strong-
er than that crime should be visited by punishment.
Every judgment of the moral faculty, every feeling
of disapprobation at unprovoked injury, every twinge
of remorse, furnishes indubitable proof that moral
evil should be visited with punishment. From this
law, written on the heart, no man can escape. " The
wages of sin is death :" and the very practice of
moral evil, involves misery in the very exercise.
But some who cannot but admit that moral evil
exists, and that as long as it does exist, there must be
misery ; yet cannot be reconciled to the doctrine of
eternal misery, which seems to be clearly taught in
the word of God. That any of God's rational crea-
tures should be doomed to a state of everlasting sin
and misery, is indeed an appalling idea ; from which
the benevolent sympathetic mind would gladly shrink ;
but as far as reason is concerned, the chief difficulty
is admitted, when it is conceded, that sin and misery
have an actual existence in the world, and have had
from a period near its commencement. For if evil
may exist, as it has done, consistently with the Divine
attributes, it may exist hereafter — it may exist for
ever. When it is argued that sin cannot deserve such
a punishment, something is assumed which cannot be
known to be true. If sin may exist and be punished
for ages, no man can prove that it may not exist for
ever, and for ever be the cause of misery. The idea
is indeed so painful to our feelings, that unless the
will of God had been revealed too clearly to be mis-
taken, the doctrine of eternal misery would never
have been received by any considerable number of
persons ; but revolting as it is to our sensibilities, it
has been from the beginning, the belief of the whole
Christian church, with a very few exceptions. We
18
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206
believe this doctrine, simply because we find it plainly-
written in innumerable passages of Scripture. If
there is any art by which this array of testimony can
be set aside, then it will be a legitimate inference, that
no doctrine is or can be proved from the sacred word.
It is not intended to adduce all the Scripture proofs
of this awful doctrine. They may be met with on
almost every page of the New Testament. It may
not be amiss, however, to cite a few passages, that the
reader may have a specimen of the proof texts which
may be adduced. There is a sin for which there is no
forgiveness, neither in this world nor in the world to
come. There was a person, concerning whom our
Saviour said, it had been good for him if he had
never been born ; which can only be true on the sup-
position, that punishment will be eternal. There
were some of whom Christ said, "ye shall die in
your sins, and where I am thither ye cannot come."
It is said, that many " shall seek to enter into life and
shall not be able." Besides, we have not the least
intimation that the lost can ever be rendered meet for
the heavenly state. Certainly, the society and blas-
phemy of devils, have no tendency to fit the souls of
the damned for the pure joys of the celestial world.
And, in confirmation of the common doctrine, we
have in Scripture every form of expression which
could express eternity of misery. The same terms
which are employed to teach the eternal existence of
God, and the perpetuity of the happiness of the
righteous, are also used to teach the endless sufferings
of the finally impenitent. And, for aught we know,
eternity is an immutable state of existence ; and he
who is doomed to punishment in another world, must
suffer eternally, because the successions of time may
have no existence there.
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STATE OP FUTURE MISERT. 207
We are not more certainly assured of the perpetu-
ity of future misery, than of the intensity of the tor-
ments which must be endured by the wretched crea-
tures who shall be doomed to everlasting banishment
from the comfortable presence of God. Whether the
fire of hell is a material fire, is an inquiry of no im-
portance. It matters not whether excruciating pain
proceeds from a material or immaterial cause. The
misery of lost sinners must be inconceivably dreadful,
if they should be abandoned to their own feelings of
remorse, despair, and the raging of malignant pas-
sions, then free from all restraint. This state of mi-
sery is spoken of as a place of outer darkness ; a
lake of fire and brimstone ; and a place where the
worm dieth not, and where the fire is not quenched.
Let every one who is within the reach of mercy, flee
from the coming wrath, and take refuge under the
outstretched wings of the divine mercy.
THE END.
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